Earnings: Self employed, or employed... Barrie

[Brian Trout]

Hi Barrie,

I'm sorry I don't have more complete information.

I have to confess, I have no idea of what the national average earnings
figures are.

I work for a piano store, and even amoung the people who work there, the
figures vary widely.   For full time employees, the lowest is probably just
over $11,000, and the highest is around $30,000 (although I happen to know
that that person worked a lot of overtime to earn that much.)

I cannot speak with as much knowledge of the independant techs in the area.
I have only ever heard three figures from full time techs in this local
area, and they fell between $30,000 and $50,000.  (Good manners prevents me
from elaborating any further.)

As far as other trades, or the national average of all workers in all
fields, I'm sorry I won't be of much help.  I imagine that there would be
someplace on the web that would give such information, but I haven't been
there yet...

It kind of reminds me of about 10 years ago...  My wife and I were newly
weds.  At the time I owned a very small janitorial service who's only
workers were my wife and myself.  We worked a few hours in the evening or a
few hours in the morning, and sometimes a few hours on the weekend.  We only
made about $800 per month.  We rented a mobile home on about an acre and a
half of land out in the country.  We had a big garden, and a nice flock of
chickens.  We had time to go places and do things.  We'd go to the library
and check out a whole armfull or books, and we read them.  We didn't have
much money, and we drove around in old 'clunkers', but when I look back, it
seems like life was much simpler and slower paced.  And that was only 10
years ago.  It seems now, we're both working full time jobs, bringing in
more than we ever dreamed of 10 years ago, but I'm really wondering about
where it's all going.  How much is enough?  Sure I could find ways to spend
the money, but just how much of my  _life_  am I willing to give away to
have those dollars.  I'm only 34 years old, but the older I get, the more
precious life becomes to me.  I've started taking walks again in the
mornings, going down a dirt road through the woods, watching the birds and
the squirels, the occasional deer or muscrat,  listening to the water
burbling in the stream, and enjoying the living creation around me.   No
amount of money can buy that.

How on earth did I ever get that far off topic?  Wow.

It's a beautiful day here, and I'm enjoying life.  I hope you all are able
to enjoy your corner of the world as well.

Wishing you life's best,

Brian Trout
Quarryville, Pa.


-----Original Message-----
From: Barrie Heaton <Piano@forte.airtime.co.uk>
To: pianotech@ptg.org <pianotech@ptg.org>
Date: Saturday, June 19, 1999 3:01 PM
Subject: Re: Earnings: Self employed, or employed... Brian L.


>In article <00b501beb9f3$7a146120$61b5aad0@brian>, Brian Trout
><btrout@desupernet.net> writes
>>    ...According to the latest available figures from the U.S.
>>    Department of Labor, average salaries for tuners/technicians in
>>    1990 were as follows:
>>
>>
>>    Fully half of it's members income........................ less than
>>    $20,000 (most likely, part timers)
>>    18% netted
>>    .........................................................$20,000 -
>>    $30,000
>>    26% had a net income of....................................$30,000
>>    or more.
>>
>Hi Brian,
>
>Do you have a National average yearly wage, some were in your country
>stats.
>
>At the moment in the UK the average yearly salary for working class
>£19,000, Middle class I think is £26,000 piano tuners in the UK are
>classed as Middle class.
>
>
>Barrie,
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>--
>
>Barrie Heaton                                  |  Be Environmentally
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>URL: http://www.uk-piano.org/                  |  To Your Neighbour
>The UK Piano Page                              |
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>
>