How do you live on an Apprentice/ Uni wage?

[fairdinkum]

Well before my apprenticeship I was working with a labouring agency earning nearly 600 a week, and paying a shit load in tax - will I get most of that back?

Depends how much you earned for the financial year, and how much tax you were paying.

Anyone who earns around $12,000 for the financial year should get it all back, thanks largely to the low income offset of $750.

It's rather easy to get a rough idea of how much you should get back - get your group certificates, which probably should have arrived by now, add up how much you earned, how much tax you paid, then go to this page and do the maths.

 

[Underdog]

Basically, converting the car to gas was the smartest thing I ever did. 67 cents a litre sucks compared to the 39 I was paying two years ago, but it is still WAY better than $1.70 or whatever it is you suckers are paying for petrol now. If you drive a VL I would imagine that it could be converted, but you should look into this yourself.

My free fuel from my work car is WAY better then whatever you suckers pay in gas...

 

[fairdinkum]

My free fuel from my work car is WAY better then whatever you suckers pay in gas...

Touche

 

[The Sultan]

suck it up when you are qualified you will be pulling a grand a week so live with it, its character building.

 

[.Shotties.]

We work about 8 to 9 hours a day, so say we do 8 hour days we earn a pitiful 5 and a half dollars an hour!

Am I being under payed? The minimum wage can't be that low can it?

You know how much Im being paid to learn up on my profession?

Nothing.

 

[Carl Hooper]

Pay rise! Starting this week I get 258 a week now, and in 3 months the government are paying all apprentices an extra 15 bucks a week!

Best news I've heard in a while, sweet.

 

[jefffff34]

I'm going back to uni post grad in 2 weeks, but have been lucky enough to be able to keep the job I am typing this message at for a 21 hour week...which means I will still bring in just over $450 after tax.

Wouldn't have thought there would be many uni students that will be on campus three days a week that could manage that, so I am in a very lucky situation.

 

[Team Mo']

Don't you just claim the petrol on tax? Save a lot of money?

A few of the tradies i know on their 1st years were getting up 15-20 bucks an hour. That was with their base wage then the site wage and when the go away working away from home allowance.

If you company has any interstate work i suggest going with them for a a few days and coming back for the weekend with the extra cash.

 

[dims]

Man that is shocking.

I'm a 2nd year electrical apprentice and i get $450 a week after tax and $640 if I work Saturday, and I don't think I get paid enough.

 

[vealesy]

my bros a 2nd year sparky.

he was on 20 an hour in first year. thats a base wage, not to mention all the benefits, (travel allowance, site allowance, redundancy) all up id say 50k a year. and then some.


you're obviously not unionised.

dont complain, and get used to being underpaid.

 

[nokiacasio]

I think it's normal for young people to be paid little.

If you don't live at home, perhaps think about living in a van? Go to the lifestyle forum for more info.

Easy to cut out (or reduce) this one... ride a bike to work.

In all seriousness, I for one don't understand why more people don't do this.

If you live close to work, it might work, but if you're too far away it may takes several hours to ride to work.

Basically, converting the car to gas was the smartest thing I ever did. 67 cents a litre sucks compared to the 39 I was paying two years ago, but it is still WAY better than $1.70 or whatever it is you suckers are paying for petrol now.

Remember LPG tanks only fit on large cars and LPG consumes 18 L/100km. A cheap small car consumes about 7 L/100km, so petrol car consumes three times less but petrol is not three times more expensive. Plus in 2011 the Government will start taxing LPG heaps.

My free fuel from my work car is WAY better then whatever you suckers pay in gas...

I don't think it's really free. The fuel comes as a payment for your labor. If you really think your petrol is free, sell it to me for $1.00 a liter. We will both profit.

 

[wce4premiership]

I'm first year and i get 280 odd for only 38 hours lol.

You're getting ripped off big time.

 

[ANGEL DARK]

Its ridiculous apprentice wages are so low.Its no wonder why there arnt to many kids out of school taking up trades anymore.We already have a massive shortage of trades people in this country and it looks as though its only going to get worse

 

[fairdinkum]

Remember LPG tanks only fit on large cars and LPG consumes 18 L/100km. A cheap small car consumes about 7 L/100km, so petrol car consumes three times less but petrol is not three times more expensive. Plus in 2011 the Government will start taxing LPG heaps.

My VR wagon uses less than 15 L/100 k's on gas, and used around 12 L/100k's when on petrol. That is to say that I believe that the perception that cars always use far more gas than petrol is unjustified.

As for small cars, I'd like to know how many cars that are as fuel economical as you claim are within the OP's price range. I would suggest there wouldn't be many. I suggest we use a figure of at least 8L/100k's for a comparison.

Now let us do the maths:

Petrol: 8 x $1.59 = $12.72/100 k's.
Gas: 15 x $0.64 = $9.6/100 k's.

Going by these rough figures, it would seem that the VR would cost around 25% less than the small car to fuel. Obviously there are other factors that are important in deciding how much a car costs to run (such as servicing, frequency of mechanical problems etc) but when judging by the cost of fuel alone, gas seems a clear for mine.

As for the excise you mention, by 2015 it will be 12.5c - hardly anything to panic about. That gas results in less carbon emissions than petrol is probably more significant to this discussion - if Rudd, Wong and co. decide to include fuel in their Emissions Trading Scheme, it would seem that petrol would come off worse than gas. On this front, however, we will have to wait and see...

 

[ShearMagic9]

These people saying $20 an hour is base wage for a first year apprentice are talking shit.

Should be getting about 35% of the rate that a normal electrician would get.

Down here in Adelaide most of them are on about $30 an hour, so that's about $10-$11.

 

[vealesy]

These people saying $20 an hour is base wage for a first year apprentice are talking shit.

Should be getting about 35% of the rate that a normal electrician would get.

Down here in Adelaide most of them are on about $30 an hour, so that's about $10-$11.

it aint bullshit mate.

where the hell do u pluck this 35% from?


Its called the construction industry, not "dodgy bobs backyard bandits"

 

[ShearMagic9]

it aint bullshit mate.

where the hell do u pluck this 35% from?


Its called the construction industry, not "dodgy bobs backyard bandits"

I have a father who works for a big firm.

If you're a first year apprentice getting $20 an hour, you're getting paid too much. Not that you should be complaining of course.

 

[angie4]

dunno bout apprentice wages in oZ at all but as someone has mentioned before...be happy about getting paid at all, coz some dont.

dont you get promotion of vocational training over there ?

@crows: what do the apprentices in your dad's firm get paid if 20 bucks is overpaid?
http://dict.leo.org/ende?lp=ende&p=thMx..&search=promotion

 

[ShearMagic9]

dunno bout apprentice wages in oZ at all but as someone has mentioned before...be happy about getting paid at all, coz some dont.

dont you get promotion of vocational training over there ?

@crows: what do the apprentices in your dad's firm get paid if 20 bucks is overpaid?
http://dict.leo.org/ende?lp=ende&p=thMx..&search=promotion

I already said, they get 35% of the full wage, so it's about $11 an hour.

 

[GoOsH]

you save $50 a week? lol, don't bother, once you've got your ticket just save $450 a week instead of $400, you won't even notice it! haha

 

[The Passenger]

....As for the drinking idea...

I work in a pub, and as I get out and help with the glasses on the floor, I'm amazed by the number of beers/bottles of drinks left alone for ever... ESPECIALLY on tables near to the smoking exit.

It would be easy enough to just pinch someones drink from there and have it for nothing. -I personally wouldn't do it due to moral and hygene issues. But it could be easily done.

As I clean glasses I regularly throw entire beers/bottles of drinks into the bin - which as far as the punters are concerned, it may as well have just been drunk by someone else...

....But no one complains... If you just stick your drink down on a table outside the toilet or smoking area, chances are you're smashed and don't really care about that drink - or you should have concerns of drink spiking and such.

...So if you're comfortable with it... Drink some random peoples drinks

i did that plenty of times during my younger years

ooo well had to be done.

 

[The Passenger]

i remember my mate was working as a bricklaying apprentice about 4-5 years ago. 240 a week he got, but had to go through 4 tolls a day (2 each way) at about 2.50 each, which meant he was spending $50 a week on tolls, about $80 on petrol, so 130 of 240 went just to getting to work.

****ing shit isn't it.

but 5 years on and he only works every second week and still earns more than anyone my age that i know (earnt on their own anyway, not those rich kids whose dads just put them straight into a huge paying job)

 

[ptrg]

Most students can study as well as work part time.
It amazes me how little they get yes, but they should have income either way.

 

[Norfolk & Clew]

How the hell has no one mentioned goon??

Fruity Lexia makes you sexier!

Also what you eat can make a huge difference! 2-3 sangas a day, plus fruit. Just drink water as well, better for you and obviously cheaper than coke etc. Chuck some cordial in it if need be.

I guess you live with the folks, can't recall you answering that one, so breakfast and dinner you shouldn't be paying for!

So much stuff you can do mate if you set your mind to it. I have had $4 in my account all week, get paid tomorrow but have just lived off soup (i know you have no where to heat it up), sandwiches, frozen pies, toast... you can always find ways!

 

[Underdog]

i rekon im pretty fuked when it comes to being able to afford to live..
Im at uni, and have got low income support - which is $115 a week.
I work a job that can offer up to about 15 hours of work BUT..

1) if i earn more than $130 in a certain week, earning the next $115 is pointless, as I will be paid it from the government BUT if i do earn more than $130, then the government will decrease how much they pay me.

So say I earn $170, instead of the government giving me $115 to support myself, they instead give me $75 .. ie im working for free unless I earn over $245, which is impossible because..

2) Im a full time uni student (engineering) attending 5 days with contact hours starting at 8 or 9am every day, and all finishing at either 5 or 6pm all days!

I rekon that its completely unfair that I get paid the same as someone who has 5-10 contact hours a week, not to mention that the $115 was chosen because that was the POVERTY THRESHOLD in 1994..

Well guess what the government hasn't changed since 1994...?

They deem me as "semi independent" because I'm still living at home and depending on my parents.. Well I can tell you that there is no "dependence" here..
I pay board, and all my own costs such as fuel ect..
Just because my parents earn over a certain salary, doesn't mean I see one cent of it - so why classify me as semi indepedent?

There was a large article on it in the Age last Sunday i think, and about people cheating the system..

Anyone have any ideas on how I can survive?

You can't live on $115-$245 a week? You are going to be buggered when you have a mortgage and bills