How are people paying for their lifestyle

Well i`m inclined to agree with polaris.
The gov knows we can`t compete on wages with most other manufacturing countries.
Minister mairtin was on the telly recently.....of course he would never say we got to reduce our wages to attract multinationals...no,no,no.....because that is not what the job applicant wants to hear...
So he goes the ...more education route...this keeps the big job dream alive for students and big job applicants and also buys a few more years ,as it does take a bit of time to get a phd ......
Getting a phd is much easier on the student as there are no exams to fail and the student is in the studying/research groove as well as enjoying a nice social life.
As well the government are going to fund these future phds ... to fulfill their promise and of course everyone involved agrees that it`s a good strategy.
Will there be jobs for these phds once they qualify....its debatable as lots of countries have lots of phds.
The other question is..what is going to happen with all the degree students...they can`t all be phds.
The big problem is the gov is relying on courting the big american mulinationals to do their cutting edge research in ireland.....there is no plans for these phds to help launch irish companies.
Its likely we`ll end up with too many chiefs , and many of the chiefs are going to end up competing with the footsoldiers for work.
 
sunrock said:
Getting a phd is much easier on the student as there are no exams to fail and the student is in the studying/research groove as well as enjoying a nice social life.
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Ha, ha. That's what I thought initially. Turns out to be much different in practice.
 
sunrock said:
Its likely we`ll end up with too many chiefs , and many of the chiefs are going to end up competing with the footsoldiers for work.
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already happening to a degree in some sectors. or earning half what the footsoldiers are earning with less benefits such as union recognition etc...
 
Blocklayers ( and trades in general) do earn a lot of money but they have a far shorter worklife than standard jobs. You wont find too many blocklayers working into their 50's, and while some may have made enough to retire and put the feet up most have to stop because their body cant take the work
 
baby_tooth said:
but do ppl not find it a bit funny that some of the most untrained and unskilled are making huge amounts of money.

take for example blocklayers.
they make the most of all tradesmen and yet their trade is by far and away the simpleist.
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That is such an ignorant statement. I work for a builder and have no great love for blocklayers but to say it is an untrained unskilled and easy job is a joke. They have to do a 4 year apprenticeship and the physical abuse the body takes is huge. Most have a work life of less than 30 years so they have to make enough in that time to cover the rest of their lifes (i never thought id be defending blocklayers)
 
baby_tooth said:
but do ppl not find it a bit funny that some of the most untrained and unskilled are making huge amounts of money.

it just seems that the reward system of pay is somewhat out of line with contribution to society....
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Thats rubbish. The 'reward system' as you put it is nothing to do with how much someone's job contributes to society - if you are going by that benchmark then it is not just unskilled labour that is overpriced but every job that you deem to be not worthy....what about accountants, how do they add value to society etc.
In general pay is based on supply and demand - if you have lots of people willing to work at a particular job for low money then that job will be low paid, but if no-one wants to do the job & the only incentive to do it is pay then the pay will have to be higher (eg prison officer)
For those who think that a particular profession is underpayed (eg teachers) then why is there still so many people going into the job - there must be other incentives besides money.
 
Supply and demand is only half the story.
For example teachers get well paid ...about50k +benefits per annum.
But there are thousands of teachers who are waiting for a permanent job, and if supply and demand were the deciding factor , we could employ more teachers at a reduced salary.
The fact is that in many jobs ....there is a rate for the job...especially in the public service.What use is supply and demand in jobs like accountants,solicitors etc whose representative bodies make sure that supply is curtailed?
No doubt in the private sectors of construction,cleaning,retail and hospitality, supply and demand are more important.Where our immigrants can be employed , wages will face downward pressure with the minimum wage acting as a floor.
 
triplex said:
interesting thread. Looking at a lot my friends and colleagues ages 28+, who matierally always seem to have everything - hair done weekly, fashionable expensive clothes, houses done to the last, i'm convinced it's because they don't know what else to do with their time...they have no hobbies, conversations are always of a shallow nature - even tv schedules are intellectually starved... so they go shopping, with the credit card..and then drinking at the weekend - cos they can't think of anything else to do.. the debt is never discussed...

keeping up with the Joneses is only a part of it...
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Excellent point. This would describe most of my colleagues/friends too (also in the 28~ age bracket.) Their life is so safe, so routine, that they don't know what to be doing with themselves. They have no hobbies, or are simply jaded, so they go shopping and drinking. They've never had to worry about anything: when they finished school, the economy was booming; IT jobs were everywhere. Straight into college to earn an easy IT Degree. Straight into a job. Can jump/switch jobs at their leisure. Salaries always seem to be increasing. The economy is on the up and up. The streets are fairly safe. They've never been in a fight. They're surrounded by lovely looking Eastern European women.

Basically, they have no problems. They are a bit bored, jaded.

I don't know anyone (again, anecdotal) who is trying to keep up with the joneses. It's simply a case of not knowing what to do with their time or with their money, and not being aware of the concept of life can be a bitch.

It's reminds me a bit of the anti-depressant crowd at the moment. Rather than figuring out what's wrong and trying to improve themselves, the solution is a few XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX. It's so easy, so they just keep on going...

Bah.
 
Wow that's pretty hard core and a bit David McWilliams-esque. Wonder what he'd call it. They must be single/no kids people you're referring to because it's hard to imagine anyone with kids having much time to spare (unless they're a yummy mummy of course).

I do know what you mean though. There seems to be a lot of people that age clad in their nice clothes but going flabby underneath and who don't seem to have much going on.

However it's probably an over generalisation. A lot of people come across pretty dull but only because you don't know them.
 
hmm..maybe we should just get on with our own lives and let everybody else worry about theirs....

d
 
ludermor said:
Blocklayers ( and trades in general) do earn a lot of money but they have a far shorter worklife than standard jobs. You wont find too many blocklayers working into their 50's, and while some may have made enough to retire and put the feet up most have to stop because their body cant take the work
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I agree with you about bricklayers and take your general point but to talk of "Trades" and "Professions" as if they were two totally separate groups that had no cross over is simplistic. To say that all trades or all professions are of comparable skill is also incorrect.
A master carpenter is a much more skilled job than a tiler (and I'm not saying that tiling is not a skilled job). A mould maker is a much more skilled person than a fitter. By the same token a medical doctor is a more skilled than a teacher (7-10 years training verses a primary degree and a one year h-dip and a barrister is more skilled than a nurse. The case could be made that teachers and nurses are not professions as they are not subject to the sanction of a statutory self regulating body of their peers but that’s a different thread…
 
Hotdogs, Hotdogs Hotdogs. What are you saying?? "an easy IT Degree". I'm not the smartest guy in this country but i'm far from the dumbest and i found very little easy about doing mine. Maybe you're a lot smarter than me but i do feel thats a rather flippent remark.
 
HotdogsFolks said:
It's reminds me a bit of the anti-depressant crowd at the moment. Rather than figuring out what's wrong and trying to improve themselves, the solution is a few XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX. It's so easy, so they just keep on going...
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What "anti-depressant" crowd? Do you actually have any experience or knowledge of such drugs? If you did then you would know that drugs such as SSRIs simply help stabilise serotonin levels in those suffering from serotonin depletion and this can help ameliorate symptoms of clinical depression and anxiety disorders as diagnosed properly by health professionals. Those not suffering from such ailments or without depleted serotonin levels are unlikely to experience any remedial effects from such drugs - since there is nothing to remedy. Also - such drugs only start stabilising serotonin levels after several months of usage and any decent medical practitioner will also recommend a dual pronged approach of drugs and counselling rather than just drugs alone. They are neither quick fix solutions nor are they some sort of "pep" XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX. Misinformation about such drugs, their applications and effects is sadly pervasive and simply serves to militate against reasoned discussion of this one means of treatment for depression and related illnesses.
 
ah don't take it personally clubman. I know loads of people on anti-depressants. It's really sad. It kills them a bit inside, but they don't seem to have the motivation to figure out the problem is most likely _not_ chemical but rather their poor choices in life.
 
Hot dogs..you are coming across as a pure ignoramous...your comments are arrogant, flippant and insulting. They hold no credibility. 'Antidepressants kill people a bit inside'... i find it hard to understand how you seem to know this?...get a grip hotdogs!!
 
Er ... I don't necessarily agree with the comments in question either but...



If you disagree with somebody's comments then address their comments and don't start flinging personal insults.
 
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