Wife working for nothing basically?

UnderPressure

slugger09 wrote: »

It all a very awkward situation, we live in the country so she does need the car to get in and out of work and the kids to school. She would need something at home online doing something or other, or a cash in hand second job somewhere but then that's a whole other kettle of fish.

How old are the kids? Has she though of maybe partaking in some education? Maybe with the Open University? From what you have said she very well may qualify for full funding and then at least she is improving her CV for the future. I know extra education is not the answer for everyone but in long term if she could and then in future years get a salaried job rather than a min wage job I am sure things would improve for you. SHe has some time at the moment if the kids are under 7, if she uses it to the best of her ability both your lives could change hugely in a few years.

Same for you if you wanted to you could do part time funded courses to improve your job prospects as well. As said I realise this is not for everyone but it IS an option for most people and a very good way of improving both of your future "employability" prospects?????

Just an idea

inspirespirit

The best way round this is if she can find a job to fit in with your job. If you work daytime hours, she could try for evening work.

When my kids were pre-school age, I found a job as a Receptionist in a Leisure Centre. I worked 5.30 till 10.30 in the evenings and 9am - 3pm Saturdays and Sundays. I did this until they went to school and then found a job 9.30 - 3.00 so I could take them to school and collect them afterwards.

I would get her to send CV's to every Leisure Centre/Swimming Pool and local employers who are open until 10 - 11 pm (petrol stations for instance). I have never waited for jobs to be advertised. I always write to them with my CV. I have found a few jobs that way throughout my life.

UnderPressure

robpw2 wrote: »

but she doesn't get £15 a week
she gets £95 its her choice to drive a car that costs £20 to fuel ,
its her choice to pay £10 parking
its her choice to have children that need child care

she is working and she gets paid what she chooses to spend her moeny on is up to her and thats life

I can see your point and for someone that lives in a city or town then OK, but as the OP has said they live rurally probably because they cannot afford to live in a town or city, or maybe because they want their children to have a better, safer childhood (as do I hence why we live rurally). When you do live in the middle of nowhere with diabolic public transport believe me the cost of petrol and diesel are huge, we sped £60 a week in petrol just to get our kids to school and back every day with maybe 1 or 2 trips into our local town a week. At the moment with Petrol prices the way they are people who live rurally are having a right old time of it believe me!

Yes yes yes you can say "well don't live rurally" OK but there are many reasons people live rurally and as said maybe the OP could not afford to live in a city or town.

bestpud

UnderPressure wrote: »

I can see your point here but even so £15 a week reward for working 16 hours is well come on now if we all start telling the truth there aren't many people here that would do it!

Even the government recognises this is a problem area that they simply do not have a solution to yet as a single parent can claim income support until the youngest child is 7, I am not well up on income support but would it be possible for a partner of a low earner to claim some?

OP would you not be better at this stage having the WTC tranferred into your name? You need to go onto one of those sites with a benefit calculator (anyone help with a link?) and play around with it to see what your best position is.

Best of luck its all well and good people saying your much better of
working but when in reality you are NOT better of financially which at the end of the day is the main reason people go to work then it is incredibly difficult to see why you should bother. And so far as career progression pffffffff some on now these are minimum wage jobs lol they would have to be very very lucky to get a promotion that could be considered inline with having a career!

Best of luck OP hope you can find a better way of doing things

I've done it. Once for very little gain (as a single parent entitled to income support but it was taken £ for £) and once when coming off disability benefits against medical advice (we lost a considerable amount of money but thought it worth it in the long term).

The OP may not gain much, but set against what they'd lose if she was at home, they are better off if she stays in work, as agreed already.

It's hard, I get that, but sometimes you have to look long term. Your children won't be this age forever, OP, and they should get so much free childcare when they are three.

Oldernotwiser

UnderPressure wrote: »

I can see your point here but even so £15 a week reward for working 16 hours is well come on now if we all start telling the truth there aren't many people here that would do it!
(

But she's getting tax credits as well as her actual wage, isn't she? The combination of the two will come to far more than £15 per week.

UnderPressure

Oldernotwiser wrote: »

But she's getting tax credits as well as her actual wage, isn't she? The combination of the two will come to far more than £15 per week.

Yes you are right and I understand that but they would still get tax credits and probably more than they get now if the OP claims them with his 40 hour a week job.

This is what I am trying (OK badly trying ) to say, when you play with the figures it is unlikely they would be any worst off than they are now, she could maybe then concentrate her time on other things to improve their prospects for the future.

As said I do realise that extra education is not what everyone wants to do, but in these times the stronger your CV the better.

All just my humble opinion.

seven-day-weekend

I say stay at work and put up with it for a few years. The children are not going to be tiny for ever and then won't need so much childcare and she will still have her job.

You have kids. Life is more difficult. That's part of being a parent.

Oldernotwiser

UnderPressure wrote: »

Yes you are right and I understand that but they would still get tax credits and probably more than they get now if the OP claims them with his 40 hour a week job.

The OP says that they would be much worse off if she didn't work, so I assume he's already looked at the figures for WTC.

DX2

UnderPressure wrote: »

I am not well up on income support but would it be possible for a partner of a low earner to claim some?

OP would you not be better at this stage having the WTC tranferred into your name?

They can't claim IS.

There is no benefit whatsoever in having TC transferred into the OP's name it's a joint claim, both of their wages are taken into account.

UnderPressure

DX2 wrote: »

They can't claim IS.

There is no benefit whatsoever in having TC transferred into the OP's name it's a joint claim, both of their wages are taken into account.

Yes but if she did give up work and the claim was transferred to the OP would this not at they very least increase the child tax credit element? Not to mention the saving on the childcare fees I am presuming tax credits aren't paying 100% of the fees to begin with? Just checked £49 per week child care, 10 a week parking so for the ease of maths there is £60 a week saved so really if the child tax credit element increased by £35 a week they would be NO worst off? This is not taking into account the 20 a week diesel but I suppose she would still use that either way, shopping kids to park etc etc.

As said the education thing is just an idea that I personally think is a great option for any parent in this situation and if nothing else should help them to gain more financially rewarding employment in the future.

Please dont attack me for this next comment it is my opinion that I am entitled to just as much as any of you, there is a bit of a culture on here at the moment of work work work regardless of whether it is truly in your best interests or not, yes the governemt would be paying for the person to study but in the long run they stand a much better chance of re-couping some of this investment through PAYE and NI etc etc than someone simply claiming whatever they can whilst earning min wage to only ever (without a huge amount of luck anyway) remain in exactly the same position they are currently in!

Whether people like it or not the government has various things in place for people with young children, essentially the main carer has an official "break from work" if they want it, seen as many many people tkae it would it not be better they did something constructive with that time? To improve all of their prospects for the future?

It makes perfect sense to me and TBH it really is a once in a lifetime opportunity for most people to improve themselves and their families futures.