That is true, but can you imagine an actual system where workers such as cleaners are paid on merit, where you are paid according to how good you are at the job.
It makes sense but it won’t come about as there would be uproar if some were seen to be favoured and getting more money.
The one place where this does happen is where people have their own business and succeed and make money based on how good they are at making the business successful.
It used to be the case before NMW was brought in cleaners could be paid anything from £2 an hour to £15 an hour I was up there at about £10-£12 an hour better you were more you got. NMW brought us all down to £6.50 an hour. Why do you think the saying where there is muck there is brass came from ? we used to be treated well and could make enough to live on. Not any more now most of us are claiming various benefits to prop up our wages and the bosses are laughing they make so much more profit.
I never understand why people object to cleaners etc getting a fair deal it can only make their own wages more as they are trained etc. Very short sighted and I can only assume they love paying tax so much they want to help our wages by giving us benefits to help us live.
One of the hardest jobs around - all power to that elbow I say, you and many others deserve a very good wage for what you do …
I work in admin in the nhs and the domestic staff get paid the same rate of pay as me. So there is no difference there.
Our ward domestic works like a trojan and she deserves every penny, if not more. She’s the best we’ve had.
Do you mean the government or the people who pay the wages Julie. If its a company who own large office buildings I suppose they pay what they need to pay to get the building cleaned. The same would apply in airports and shopping centres etc.
if you are working for an individual rather than a large company you can negotiate your rates I presume.
I hate football, so I could never agree with their salaries. I know it’s some peoples lifes. Those are the people who probably think they deserve the money they get. Maybe if I was a footie fan then I’d think different 
To be fair the people who own the buildings tend to out source the cleaning they pay a large sum thinking a lot will go on wages and are often shocked when they realise how little the private company they employ pays the cleaners.
I have worked in the private sector and the public sector generally public sector is better paid but less well organised and equipped I have found. No negotiation these days it’s if you don’t like it there are thousands of Eastern Europeans waiting to take the job who will work for less.
Yes I think that sort of thing happens a lot when jobs are out sourced and the company who pay them are not getting a fair deal either.
I see what you mean about not being able to negotiate, in the end its not what a good job you do, it’s hard when a person takes pride in doing a good job. There are people in most jobs who are lazy compared to others they work with, it’s very hard to see them being paid the same for doing a lot less.
Absolutely heart breaking it is 
Unless you work for royalty, I can’t see domestic staff ever getting a good salary. That’s the reality of things from what I know of.
My partner paid his housekeeper £12 an hour, which I thought was very good. It was more than I get
I don’t think I am asking for a good salary just enough to live on would do me.
Do work at royal residents myra , staff get minnuim wage , some get to live in but many don’t the wages are terrible
Yes Markey, in my own little world I stupidly think some people will get some benefits and perks working for certain people. Of course it’s not always the case. I’ve never worked anywhere that you get bonuses or the likes. I hear about the bonuses the workers of Santander get each year and it’s more than a year’s salary for me. How the hell can anyone justify that? They’re already getting well paid. That’s banks for you. I don’t grudge anyone an extra penny, but I do hope that they appreciate what they have. Some families are struggling to pay rent. It’s an unfair world imo.
Edit: And I point blank refuse to believe that they work harder than most people trying to scrape by.
After my job in IT, I worked as a school janitor. Reasonable pay for a fairly menial job - about £19k pa. It was salaried and had a final salary pension. (I should be getting that this year)
The cleaners were employed by a cleaning firm and the contract was out to tender every two years. The cleaners were an OK bunch, but some were a bit lazy. Most of the older ones just did it for ‘pin money’ because they had a spouse with a good income. They didn’t really care much about the job.
It was the same with the support staff. Many of them, like myself, were semi-retired and worked to keep themselves busy and not so much for the money.
AS for footballers, millionaires etc… I don’t really care what they earn. I have always had a career where I could advance and have a reasonable income. Some people earned less than me and some a hell of a lot more.
We’ve got to look after ourselves and make the best of what we’ve got.
Some of the highest payed people in sport play baseball-shoot I was pretty good at rounders at primary school-missed out there
Yes that’s true. Anyway, I do think you cut your cloth to suit your needs. If you earn a basic wage then you try and manage the best you can.
It does help when you enjoy your job. Maybe not so good wages, but self worth and contentment does help. I always feel sorry for those who earn a pittance and HATE their job. They probably dread a Monday morning. Now that is a shame
Of course, they need cleaners to clean out the showers and changing rooms so here we are 
Give us a good wage and the tips
I love my job but if I can’t afford to live in this area (and it’s becoming obvious I can’t) then exactly where do I go ? we all need wages that pay enough to live where we work, or everyone will be doing their own cleaning because we will be in a ghetto up the road unable to get to you.
If I were a rich man I would sooner have a good cleaning lady in my mansion than own a football team, footballers and games are one thing and only worth the playing of, and some of these glorified one trick wonders, womanisers, and public whingers think they are the only onion in the stew, but a good cleaning lady is worth her weight in pure gold.
In the old days the well to do would try to swipe a good cleaner from their friends, make tempting offers of more money and better conditions, cleaners, cooks, nannies, and butlers of good reputation were highly thought of and an asset to pass down to your children, indeed many children got more love from their nannies and house staff then they did from their own parents. Give me a good housekeeper to manage my home and I’m as happy as Larry, that is of course providing I was a single rich man, as it is I have to settle for the wife God bless her.
I must admit that while I could afford to buy a reasonable house when I moved to Hampshire, by the time I left, I couldn’t. New small semis started at around £250k - not the £13k that I paid. My employer also paid all the relocation expenses, loans and interim accomodation. I doubt if many firms do that now. Unless you’re a footballer??