I was always amazed at the number of people who had 35+ years in the Federal Government and under the CSRS pension plan who sweated about when they would get their first pension check. A lot of these people were GS-13s and up and had a working spouse.
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I was always amazed at the number of people who had 35+ years in the Federal Government and under the CSRS pension plan who sweated about when they would get their first pension check. A lot of these people were GS-13s and up and had a working spouse.
I'm assuming you are saying that they were worried about the time between their last paycheck and their first pension check.
Where I used to work, we switched from getting paid 2 times per month to getting paid every two weeks about 10 years ago. The way the calendar fell people had to go about 3 weeks between checks when the switch occurred. There was a huge panic. Lots of people worried they could not do it.
Apparently that is very common, living paycheck-to-paycheck. At one place my older sister used to work if the Friday paychecks didn't come out before noon lots of people, many earning six-figure salaries, couldn't buy lunch.
And at my last job for reasons I've forgotten we didn't get paid on one Friday but did the following Monday. No biggie for most but I was amazed at the number of people freaking out how they were going to get through the weekend. One guy took out a payday loan!
I don't get it.
What do these people do when the transmission falls out of the car or the washing machine croaks? Whip out the plastic I guess.
travelover
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Call one of us and give us a sob story.
Redbugdave
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I retired about two months ago...under FERS. There are several people where I work(ed) that are CSRS 13's and higher that are living paycheck to paycheck. Some 35+ years, too. Your observation is valid Helen. They are lucky to have a job because most of their job performance is below par, too.
cj
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Last year I took a seasonal cashier job at a chain hobby store, just "for fun". I loved it - lots of chatter with customers about their projects, a big employee discount weekend, and I enjoyed just getting out of the house. Easy work & no stress when I left at the end of the day (usually 4 hour shifts). They asked me to stay on, but I decided not to because of some family health issues that popped up. I may do it again., but it's really nice to have the choice.
I know for a fact that I was just as fast as the 20 year-olds, and had some customers who told me they loved my attitude. One regular customer said I was the best cashier in the store, LOL. More than once, after ringing up a purchase, the customer changed the amount of cash she handed over and I had to figure out the change in my head. They laughed that I was able to figure it out, as many younger employees just can't do it. So yes, I think the older generation has a leg up for some of these jobs, if they want them!
On a side, perhaps political note, there is lots of talk here in Maryland and elsewhere (ex: fast food employees) about raising the minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 or more because "people can't live on minimum wage." I truly believe that some of them are shooting themselves in the foot, because if the minimum wage goes up that high, you might find more people like me finding it worthwhile to take that part time job. You'll get better workers, and some of the people who think they "deserve" more money for poor work will find themselves out on the street.
I know for a fact that I was just as fast as the 20 year-olds, and had some customers who told me they loved my attitude. One regular customer said I was the best cashier in the store, LOL. More than once, after ringing up a purchase, the customer changed the amount of cash she handed over and I had to figure out the change in my head. They laughed that I was able to figure it out, as many younger employees just can't do it. So yes, I think the older generation has a leg up for some of these jobs, if they want them!
On a side, perhaps political note, there is lots of talk here in Maryland and elsewhere (ex: fast food employees) about raising the minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 or more because "people can't live on minimum wage." I truly believe that some of them are shooting themselves in the foot, because if the minimum wage goes up that high, you might find more people like me finding it worthwhile to take that part time job. You'll get better workers, and some of the people who think they "deserve" more money for poor work will find themselves out on the street.
A store like Hobby Town in Frederick? The first time I walked in there I said "Uh, oh, I could get in serious trouble in here!" and the guy at the register, about my age, laughed and said "That's what we want you to do."
I think it would be unwise for me to be exposed to all that constant temptation.
Andre1969
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I don't get it.
That gave me a bit of a flashback. My washing machine DID croak, in early 2009 around the bottom of the Great Recession. Oops, actually no, it was the dryer, now that I think about it. Even though I still had money, I was fretting more over the ~$200K I had "lost", plus the ~$12K I had just spent converting the house from oil heat to an all-electric heat pump (needed all new ductwork and new circuit breaker with upgraded amp service, so that's why it was so pricey).
Even though I'm in much better shape now than I was back then, I think I'd still fret a bit if the washer or dryer went down. Old habits die hard, I guess.
Even though I'm in much better shape now than I was back then, I think I'd still fret a bit if the washer or dryer went down. Old habits die hard, I guess.
There is hope. The Internet is, among other things, a huge library of information. More than once I've found how to repair stuff that I was clueless about. Just this afternoon I was thinking we might have to replace a 12-year-old washing machine but 15 minutes of searching saved us much more than 15%. In short I'll be able to fix the washing machine for a grand total of $10.95 and about ten minutes of time.
The post about it is here: http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f29/your-recent-repair-68722-12.html#post1424499
Hermit
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
My sister's grand-MIL was a real goer into her 90s. You just never know...
