Care Giver in UK. Good or bad idea? Anyone know about this?

Londo

Londo

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I have a friend who has just headed off to the UK to work as a care giver for 4 months. What she will be doing is working 6 days a week looking after old people who need assistance. It is not something I would want to do but she needs the money...

And the money is apparently pretty good when you look at it from here, around GBP100 a day (R1200) so she'll be making around R29,000 a month gross. But I wonder how much is deducted for tax, etc.? Has anyone done it? Or know anyone who has? How much did they come out with? How did they like it?
 
My mom did it.she knows several other people that did it a few times.your friend might be in for a shock,depending on who she gets.the working conditions are horrible.you have to wipe their asses, etc.they treat you like a slave.the families often treat you like **** because they know you need the money.they dont always have the right equipment so when you have to bath the elderly you have to pick them up and put them in the bath.my mom f-ed up her shoulder and it took like 2 years to come right.imo if you get a nice family its ok,but more often than not you dont.cant remember exactly what my mom got.they got payed per week, like 500 pounds.iirc could go up to like 650? but this is trying to remember from years back.

Not many people last longer than 3-4months at the bad places.6 at a stretch.the first time my mom whent she stayed quite a while because she moved from place to place.one thing she did mention was that she got attached to the families that were nice. :)
 
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Londo said:
I have a friend who has just headed off to the UK to work as a care giver for 4 months. What she will be doing is working 6 days a week looking after old people who need assistance. It is not something I would want to do but she needs the money...

And the money is apparently pretty good when you look at it from here, around GBP100 a day (R1200) so she'll be making around R29,000 a month gross. But I wonder how much is deducted for tax, etc.? Has anyone done it? Or know anyone who has? How much did they come out with? How did they like it?
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If she is getting GBP600 / week that is a good salary for a care giver. I know private work as a care giver GBP450 is considered good.

With 600 per week, after deductions she should clear 450. Thats a decent amount, but the job itself can be very demanding depending on who you get placed with. A family member of mine looks after a 91 year old woman and it can be emotionally and physically taxing.

Depending on the conditions of the job, she may be live-in or a shift worker. Live-in has the advantage of you saving more money, but shift work has the advantage of more freedom.
 
fonoi said:
If she is getting GBP600 / week that is a good salary for a care giver. I know private work as a care giver GBP450 is considered good.

With 600 per week, after deductions she should clear 450. Thats a decent amount, but the job itself can be very demanding depending on who you get placed with. A family member of mine looks after a 91 year old woman and it can be emotionally and physically taxing.

Depending on the conditions of the job, she may be live-in or a shift worker. Live-in has the advantage of you saving more money, but shift work has the advantage of more freedom.
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Agree.my mom said being a live in was bad because you are stuck in the house for quite a bit and cant go anywhere.sometimes it was just her.sometimes there were 2 of them working in shifts.
 
I know of two people, a friend's sister and an older lady in our community.

Friend's sister left SA many years ago in her mid 20's to do it. But she was smart about it and only worked for one private woman, not in a hospital or hospice. She was rewarded very well. Got married and still lives there doing the same thing last time I checked. She managed to continue only working privately, one client at a time.

The older lady, went over for 2 years or so. Came back loaded with cash and is living out her days now in relative comfort.

Thing is, don't be doing it if its not 'in your nature/blood' to help the old geezers. Respecting, helping and working in that field is a personal conviction.

I commend people that work in that field and don't bitch about it.
 
Shake&Bake said:
Thing is, don't be doing it if its not 'in your nature/blood' to help the old geezers. Respecting, helping and working in that field is a personal conviction.

I commend people that work in that field and don't bitch about it.
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Also remember they are extremly strict over there, do not do this if you have a temper or lack self control. You can easily have criminal charges laid against you for things that in another job would only earn you a dismissal. This is because the "boss" is normally elderly or frail, so a disagreement that gets out of hand with you swearing or something like that they can lay charges of abuse.
 
Londo said:
I have a friend who has just headed off to the UK to work as a care giver for 4 months. What she will be doing is working 6 days a week looking after old people who need assistance. It is not something I would want to do but she needs the money...

And the money is apparently pretty good when you look at it from here, around GBP100 a day (R1200) so she'll be making around R29,000 a month gross. But I wonder how much is deducted for tax, etc.? Has anyone done it? Or know anyone who has? How much did they come out with? How did they like it?
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GBP100 pd is quite low. And they have very high tax(es) there. But if she lives a very quiet lifestyle, she should be able to save some money
 
Here are the tax tables for the UK.

If someone is working there legally they don't have to put up with inadequate equipment or any nonsense like that. They're nutty about health and safety in the UK, to excess, but it does mean that if you're in a potentially harmful or dangerous working environment you can complain to get something done about it. If someone is working there illegally, then there is not much you can do if you want to keep your job, but you won't be paying taxes either.

It is a hard job, but the money is good.
 
noxibox said:
Here are the tax tables for the UK.

If someone is working there legally they don't have to put up with inadequate equipment or any nonsense like that. They're nutty about health and safety in the UK, to excess, but it does mean that if you're in a potentially harmful or dangerous working environment you can complain to get something done about it. If someone is working there illegally, then there is not much you can do if you want to keep your job, but you won't be paying taxes either.

It is a hard job, but the money is good.
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It not just income taxes which are high. You pay very high council taxes, road taxes, sin taxes (Cigarettes are GBP7 a pack now).
VAT is 20%
 
JStrike said:
It not just income taxes which are high. You pay very high council taxes, road taxes, sin taxes (Cigarettes are GBP7 a pack now).
VAT is 20%
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its not really that expensive. If you live alone, you get a 25% discount on council tax. There is no such thing as a road tax. Ive lived in the UK for coming on 5 years and the only toll I ever paid was the Dartford toll to cross the Thames coming from Kent into London.

London is more expensive, but the money is better. And if you are working illegally, you will be paid less and will be working for crap company who will exploit you because you cant go to the authorities.
 
Londo said:
I have a friend who has just headed off to the UK to work as a care giver for 4 months. What she will be doing is working 6 days a week looking after old people who need assistance. It is not something I would want to do but she needs the money...

And the money is apparently pretty good when you look at it from here, around GBP100 a day (R1200) so she'll be making around R29,000 a month gross. But I wonder how much is deducted for tax, etc.? Has anyone done it? Or know anyone who has? How much did they come out with? How did they like it?
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I know a few people who work in the industry. £100 a day sounds like the high end, which means not too many will get that. My ex is a manageress in a company that hires care-givers. When she started as a care giver about 2 years ago, she was earning £1100 a month. While not a lot, as a second income it was siginficant. Maybe working for a private individual payes more, but its not easy getting those jobs without references and experience.

bear in mind you will struggle to find a 1 bedroom flat in London for less than £800 a month. £100 a day isnt a lot in London
 
zippy said:
There is no such thing as a road tax.
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You are correct in name only. All vehicles in the UK have a "Tax Disk" which was originally introduced as a dedicated road fund tax.

Successive Governments have co-opted the "Fund" for other uses and disguised their thievery by changing the name of the disk.

However even the Government website still refers to Tax Disc: http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/OwningAVehicle/HowToTaxYourVehicle/index.htm

As far as Road Tolls are concerned, all the major new bridges and tunnels are tolled, and a number of smaller river crossings, and there is at least one toll motorway.
 
zippy said:
its not really that expensive. If you live alone, you get a 25% discount on council tax. There is no such thing as a road tax. Ive lived in the UK for coming on 5 years and the only toll I ever paid was the Dartford toll to cross the Thames coming from Kent into London.

London is more expensive, but the money is better. And if you are working illegally, you will be paid less and will be working for crap company who will exploit you because you cant go to the authorities.
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I remember paying a road tax, or vehicle tax or something like that.
It is very expensive. I was earning basically double what friend will be earning, and I didn't save a penny.
 
Billy said:
You are correct in name only. All vehicles in the UK have a "Tax Disk" which was originally introduced as a dedicated road fund tax.

Successive Governments have co-opted the "Fund" for other uses and disguised their thievery by changing the name of the disk.

However even the Government website still refers to Tax Disc: http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/OwningAVehicle/HowToTaxYourVehicle/index.htm

As far as Road Tolls are concerned, all the major new bridges and tunnels are tolled, and a number of smaller river crossings, and there is at least one toll motorway.
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Thanks. Yep, the tax disc is what I was refering to.
They find hundreds of ways to sneakily tax you in the UK. All to pay for the socialist system and massive government
 
JStrike said:
Thanks. Yep, the tax disc is what I was refering to.
They find hundreds of ways to sneakily tax you in the UK. All to pay for the socialist system and massive government
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There are no "sneak taxes"

In fact, I probably pay the same type of taxes in the UK that I paid in SA:

Income tax
Vat
Council Tax - Rates and taxes
Car Tax.

I pay proportionally less tax in the UK than I paid in SA. Even my National Insurance contributions(i pay £185 a month), which is a health tax is less than what I was paying for medical aid in SA.

I have a lot more spare cash at the end of every month than I ever did in SA.

As for Billy's comment that all the major new bridges and tunnels are tolled is absolutly crap. The busiest tunnel in the UK is the Blackwall Tunnel in south east London. It isnt tolled. There are 3 tunnels under the Thames that I know arent tolled. I have driven over bridges on the Thames that arent tolled.

What you do get in London is the congestion charge for the inner city, which I think is for non-residents.

The only tunnel/bridge that I have ever driven that is tolled and I have driven Dover to London, to Newcastle and to Manchester, the Dartford Crossing from Kent into London. I dont know of any others.
 
JStrike said:
I remember paying a road tax, or vehicle tax or something like that.
It is very expensive. I was earning basically double what friend will be earning, and I didn't save a penny.
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depends on your car. Smaller cars pay less. I drive 1.8 Vauxhall Insignia and its expensive. nailed me for £210 for the year last week. London is crazy. I moved out. Its cheap living outside of London. I save £500 a month with no effort. While living in London, I saved about £150. It also depends on your income of course. I dont know how anyone can live in London on less than £30 000 per year.
 
My mother is a registered nurse and she did it about three years ago and loved it. She had great support from the NHS, all the correct equipment, etc. She is used to the harsh conditions locally so she was amazed at how organised and supportive the structures were there.

She saved a large chunk of cash, travelled around Europe and is still pen pals with some of her patients and their families. Nursing is a vocation for her so she gets incredible satisfaction from being in a position to help people so a good attitude probably helped a lot.
 
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