Things that have changed for the worse in the last 40 years

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Comments

  • Wibbles
    Wibbles Online Community Member Posts: 2,491 Championing
    woodbine said:
    I started a part time job at a petrol station in 1972 it was 32p a gallon today it's more like £7.20 a gallon, beer was about 25p a pint now it depends where you live as to it's price.
    I'm a glass half full type of person most of the time, as for respect I'm a great believer that it has to be earned, whilst it's true that Thatchers time in office saw an end (and rightly so) to corporal punishment, I was at Grammar school from 70-75 and it had been abolished there by then.
    I used to live on an RAF base in the early 80's and paid 14p per pint for strong scrumpy!! 
  • L_Volunteer
    L_Volunteer Community Volunteer Adviser, Scope Member Posts: 7,922 Championing
    What a really insightful thread! It is interesting to hear about how the prices of things have changed over time.

    The one I remember the most is the price change in fredos (chocolate). I remember when they were 1p and 2 p in the local shop and they are now over £1!  :o
  • leeCal
    leeCal Online Community Member Posts: 7,537 Championing
    I bought a fender jazz bass guitar for £250 brand new in the early eighties, the price now is between £1200/1500. On the other hand my weekly wage was around £120 a week at that time, now it would be around £1000. 🙂
  • leeCal
    leeCal Online Community Member Posts: 7,537 Championing
    Ah, no unfortunately. I gave up playing in London and sold it to go home around Christmas time. Wish I’d kept though! 
  • janer1967
    janer1967 Online Community Member Posts: 21,922 Championing
    My first job in 1983 was on a yts scheme pay was £25 per week for full time work.  It was awful doing the same job as others when they were getting at least 4 times as much 
  • Jo_2022
    Jo_2022 Online Community Member Posts: 295 Empowering
    The price of houses! People in my grandparents generation could afford to buy a home. Homeownership seems like an impossible dream now for many people. 
  • leeCal
    leeCal Online Community Member Posts: 7,537 Championing
    edited May 2022
    I bought a three bed semi in the early eighties for £23k, It was expensive at the time, five percent deposit and the mortgage was £123 a month including an endowment element. I remember it well because the mortgage was almost exactly one weeks wages for me. My partner was a clerical officer and was paid approx £120 a month! @Jo_2022.

    as a matter of interest I worked for an estate agent in 1971 and you could buy a two bed terraced house for £1000 and one which was modernised for about £1200/1500. My wage as an office junior was £7 a week. This was also in the south east of the country.
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Online Community Member Posts: 64,463 Championing
    I left school when i was 16 and went onto a YTS scheme too. My pay for the week back then was £29.50 and yes, i did exactly the same work as everyone else but for a lot less money. Thankfully, my employer did take me on full time after 6 months. Can't remember what my wages were back then though. I do remember going to the office every Friday to collect my "wage packet" in a little brown envelope lol.
    Bought my first house in 1991 for £26,500.
  • calcotti
    calcotti Online Community Member Posts: 10,001 Championing
    edited May 2022
    Jo_2022 said:
    The price of houses! People in my grandparents generation could afford to buy a home. Homeownership seems like an impossible dream now for many people. 
    Yes indeed. I bought my first house (three bedroom mid terrace) in 1982 for £15,000 (it needed work doing). I was earning £4500 per annum at the time. That’s a much lower salary multiple than today’s prices and with high inflation the real value of the mortgage payments reduced significantly over the next decade.
  • Lisatho11987777
    Lisatho11987777 Scope Member Posts: 5,874 Championing
    My mum and dad brought their house 60yrs  ago 1200.00  can't buy a new car for that much now 
  • janer1967
    janer1967 Online Community Member Posts: 21,922 Championing
    While the yts scheme wasn't a success for many I was taken on by the company at the end of the scheme and stayed with the same company for 30 years working my way up the ladder 

    I may have started on a annual wage of £1, 300 but when I left my salary was £35,000 with additional bonus so I didn't do too bad 
  • Wibbles
    Wibbles Online Community Member Posts: 2,491 Championing
    edited May 2022
    I started an apprenticeship in 1980 and my pay as a 17 year old was £36 per week for a 42 hour week - I paid £7.11 for accommodation and food., ran a car and still had enough to go to the pub most nights! 
    I bought my first house in 1987 at £30k when mortgage interest rates were 15% and struggled for 10 years but now am happy with my lot 
  • Wibbles
    Wibbles Online Community Member Posts: 2,491 Championing

    I'm not saying the 80's was a particularly good era.... it was however I would say, less violent, less woke and much more family oriented. 

    I don’t know all the lingo but I thought being woke was a good thing? 

    I think schools and education has gotten much worse. Toddlers and reception aged children getting expelled is just madness to me. I don’t understand why it’s jumped to as an option for such young children as it has such a bad knock effect for their lives. All the different reward charts and behaviour monitors and stuff just endless experiments yet it still seems classes and students are out of control. I don’t agree with corporal punishment but there must be some middle ground somewhere   

    "Woke" means being alert to injustice in society, especially racism

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