max age to do a physical job.

stu12345_2

the job I went for on Wednesday was working on the bin collection with council.
I was shocked at the conditions.i asked about toilet and meal breaks .I was told as the bin wagon can visit other towns up to 15 miles away,it never goes back to base for breaks.

so if you need to pee,you do it on the side of the wagon and if you want your half hour break ,you wash your hands on a tap at the side of the wagon, cold water and take it in the cab with workmates, as for toilets,forget it as the wagon will park up anywhere for 30 mins, eg industrial estate.
so a number 2 ,is definitely a worry!!
that is the worst working condition I have ever heard.the interviewer said they also have women bin loaders, I asked how do they pee at the side of the lorry, it could be in a housing estate in the rounds !!

I said an employer has to provide washing, cooking and toilet facilities.he said as it's a mobile unit,they don't have to provide anything.
I also said by law you need to be  away from the cab if your a driver in your break,tacho laws.he seemed to shrug it off and said you eat in the cab with your workmates, shocking!!
the rate of pay was just above min wage, and he said you will lift 900 bin bags a day, it's a 20 ton wagon, in all weathers, cos where I live,rural ,we don't have wheelie bins,it's still bin bags.

he was to phone me yesterday to say yes or no.he hasn't called.i don't know what to do. the hours are good , early finish,Mon to Friday.
however,I've applied for 2 better jobs,but the recruitment process is taking ages,I'm at stage 3 of 5 and prob a  couple of months to go in their selection.

itsthelittlethings

Try and see a career coach. Ask at the local library as they may know where you can get one. The government website National Careers Service is good too.

It’s never too late to change careers. I moved from support work where I wasn’t happy into admin and have literally just bumped into an old acquaintance who used to do manual work. He is now working as a support worker and loves it.

Marcon

stu12345_2 said:

TELLIT01 said:

Some people well into their 70s can do heavy physical work perfectly well, others half their age can't.  My neighbour is a scaffolder in his mid 30s and he doesn't think he can carry on doing that for much longer.

I look like a little Mr universe lol. but boy oh boy do I need my sleep. and on my days off, I sleep a lot.but still feel knackered.

Have you had a blood test recently? A fit 55 year old who is 'only' working 6 hours a day (however manual the job) shouldn't be as tired as you seem to be. Could be something as simple as iron deficiency or other easy to treat medical issue.

lincroft1710

Forget the bin job it will exhaust you! Also I have no doubt the interviewer will class you as a troublemaker for saying their working conditions were not legal

Grumpy_chap

stu12345_2 said:

I'm 55 and done mostly physical jobs for last 10 years.im slim with some good muscles. , current job is full-time physical with bosses I hate., current workmates are 65 ,slow and lazy and hide a lot.
but I feel I get tired now after a shift
( I've noticed a big change in recovery since I was 45)

stu12345_2 said:

I just get so tired so often.

stu12345_2 said:

as I am slim, have great muscles, but get tired.more tired than I was at 45 ,even at 50..
my diet is superb, so is my hydration levels, I don't drink.but I smoke 6 cigarettes a day.

stu12345_2 said:

I look like a little Mr universe lol. but boy oh boy do I need my sleep. 

stu12345_2 said:

I feel it's just my age and internal recovery systems that are getting slower and slower..
I have a Mediterranean diet and avoid alcohol completely.
I had my testosterone levels checked etc at doctors and it showed average. all blood work is showing normal. lung function is also normal for my age.

I don't need the gym as I get all the exercise I need in the job .6 hrs a day, and that is more than anyone does in a gym daily.

Comparisons with others are irrelevant as we each have our own, individual and personal capability level.  That can vary with time.
How much is the extent of tiredness a change for yourself?  You seem to suggest it is, at least slowly over 5 or 10 years.

There can be a tendency to consider "fit and healthy" as one metric and treat it as binary yes / no outcome whereas the details is rather more nuanced.  To be "healthy" is all about the status of being illness / disease free.  To be "fit" is related to the ability of the body perform activity.  "Fitness" is multi-faceted, so a gymnast, body builder or runner can all be fit but all have very different physical attributes.

As we age, our body's natural rate of healing does slow but we can take some actions to reduce the impact of that.
You mention getting exercise through the 6 hours per day of manual work.  Based on the description of the outcomes  - "great muscles" - "little Mr Universe" - is that manual work predominantly resistance / strength based activity?
Does your activity / exercise include enough cardio / respiratory challenge?  These factors have more impact than resistance activities to influence tiredness and the internal recovery systems.

As others have suggested, it is worth a visit to the GP to assess the changes and the tiredness you are experiencing so that they can rule in / out any medical cause and / or factors such as vitamin deficiency.  "Tiredness" can be a symptom of many medical conditions and many are easily addressed.

Finally, a bit of an experience share.  When I was 40, or just after, I was always tired and exhausted.  A blood test at the GP identified an auto-immune condition.  That has now been easily treated and my energy levels are massively restored.  

ACG

My uncle is 60 and a steel erector. Thats a pretty manual job. 
My mum (weighs about 9 stone and is 64) is a delivery driver for a supermarket. She loves the job, but that is hard work for her and she is starting to feel it, but she has about 12 months before she can retire, although I think she might retire at the end of next summer personally. 

Everyone is different, if you are starting to feel it then its probably time to start reducing your workload or finding a different job. There is no point in leaving it until its too late and you do some damage. 

Cloth_of_Gold

How about road sweeper instead of bin collector? Does your council have any of these roles available as that would be much lighter work. Many of the road sweepers where I live look to be well into their 50s or even 60s and although they are out in all weathers of course, it doesn't involve heavy lifting.

Longwalker

Im 60 and yep, huge shock to the system having to still work when I was told retirement age was 60. Esp as most of my pre 40 life was spent in office jobs, which whilst stressful, could have been held on to in older years

I went into hospitality aged 44.Hospitality isnt a walk in the park, its long unsocial hours. I then moved into cooking, working 12 hr shifts without a meal break or any type of sit down break, I was fit enough to do that till my early 50's

Then I went into veg production, cold, wet, horrible conditions, 30 min break in a day, early starts, late nights, on the feet all day and in the winter wasn't unheard of for the loos to have frozen and still you were expected to work

Now at 60 Im waitressing and whilst I easily clock up 6 miles a day in 4 hours, and often my shoulders are sore, its a piece of pee compared to what I have done before 

At 60 I smoke perhaps 10 cigs a week and drink whisky like its out of fashion, Not only do I get my steps in at work, I do 4-6 miles a day walking the dog and an exercise walk. I also do ten mins a day cardio and park run on the Saturdays Im not working. 

Im also training for a marathon in June

Last year, I struggled, Always tired, no energy and dodged any suggestion of exercise - I was also very depressed. Got to the doctors , got the medication. This year I got it together enough to change the diet and get the exercise in and no way do I feel Im 60

Muscle tone isnt what it once was, even the legs are showing my age

Mr L is a builder, 62 and another 3 years to go. Hes feeling it, but hes top of his game so can take on work without having to do the majority of it anymore so whilst he comes home sore and tired, he gets by ok

Your first stop needs to be with your GP. Get a full work up, which you appear to have done so there is nowt wrong with you. Dont assume you are getting all the exercise you need in work - there wouldn't be fat NHS staff if that was true

Mr L needs a good 8 hrs sleep, I only need 5, everyone is different that way  and everyone is different as to what they perceive to be physical work and whats too much. Only you can decide if a job is too much ( as Ive had to over the past 10 year)  Ive had a 70yo boss who could touch her toes and walk the floor with her hands and I struggle to get to my ankles. 

stu12345_2

I wonder if it's to do with sleep.im getting 5 and a half hours sleep a night I sometimes get up for a pee as well.so it's a broken sleep.
however I did notice when on a 2 week holiday,that I felt human again on day 3. no alarm clocks and such and eyeballs and get up and go felt like a 21 yr old again.

when I was 21 I had 2 jobs.a labourer 9 to 5pm, then delivery driver for Chinese takeaway from 5 to 11pm.
where did all that energy come from back then..

I do remember being unemployed about 20 years ago for 4 months ( the only time ever,) and the amount of energy I had was fantastic.no alarm clocks, staying  up to 3am, long lie ins,no 40 hr grafting. and also no money!!

as for the bin collection job vacancy,I think I will turn it down if offered.the job also did litter picking,beach cleaning, recycling lorry,,leaf blowing. so it wasn't 100% bins all the time.
I was attracted to the fact I could walk to work in 5 mins and a Mon to Friday job that ends at 3pm everyday.

but it's the working conditions that put me off.i thought I'd get a break at the depot or I could then walk home for lunch.
but sadly no,
 it's a pee at side of lorry and sit in cab for rest , where ever the bin wagon parks up .

I used to be a bus driver,at least I got a break at depot,( cooking, fridge,pool table, couches,TV, washing,toilet facilities,within drivers restroom etc).but when out on road I remember on a route at a terminus, peeing in a bottle halfway up the stairs in the double decker,so nobody could see what I was doing.

Alanp

As an ex service engineer peeing in a bottle was a norm for me, plus I know nearly every lay by in North Yorkshire, I visited care homes so doing other ablutions wasn’t a problem, I now work as a maintenance man in a care home, I love it, three years left when I can officially retire, although I have a good private pension so I can retire anytime, do you have any diy skills?, perhaps look for a maintenance post in a care home…