I’d do anything!
The credit crunch is turning Britain into an 'Oliver Twist Society' with a growing number of parents paying children as young as four to carry out domestic jobs to save money, new research shows[1].
Almost two thirds (63 per cent) of families now get their kids to take on tasks from simple gardening or cleaning to washing the car instead of forking out on hired help. And with the cash often in lieu of old-fashioned pocket money and usually below the minimum rate they would have to pay outsiders, it means canny parents can save cash, the study claims.
The trend is increasing, according to the results of the research by Sheilas’ Wheels home insurance. Only 38 per cent of adults say that when they were young their own parents paid them for the same chores. In the past working couples who used to be strapped for time would pay for dog walkers or domestic help but now they are strapped for cash and so pay their children instead.
While critics may feel paying children to work is a return to Dickensian practices, parents often feel it gives youngsters a sense of having to earn money rather than get it for nothing.
Almost nine in ten (86 per cent) of parents say it gives children a better understanding of money though 14 per cent believe there is plenty of time to get a work ethic as they grow older. Even children as young as four are getting in on the act with one in four (24 per cent) parents under 30 paying the toddlers to clean their rooms and 16 per cent for dusting or cleaning.
A third of those who pay their under-fours give them between £1-2 an hour, less than half the minimum wage though and only one in 20 pay them more than a fiver an hour.
Children aged up to 11 have a wider variety of paid-for jobs, including dog walking, babysitting and helping with cooking meals but, again, the going rate is still only £1-2 an hour.
Older offspring aged up to 16 are more likely to carry out more difficult chores like mowing the lawn and even shopping and the average rate is also higher but still averaging £3-5 an hour.
One in four parents (25 per cent) say they resent paying their own flesh and blood to do chores but many do so because they are suffering from high mortgage rates and the cost of living. This increases to 39 per cent of parents in the South East who are probably saving the most by employing their kids because the cost of tradesmen and workers is often higher.
The fact that children are willing to work for their pocket money may be because they have been brought up with the tools of the trade - literally! Almost three in four parents have bought toys which resemble tools or workmanlike objects according to Sheilas’ Wheels, who surveyed 1,000 parents of children under 16.
It found that 53 per cent have bought toy kitchens or a toy iron, mainly for little girls, while 47 per cent of, predominantly, boys grow up with toy toolkits. Six in ten mums and dads surveyed (60 per cent) said these kind of toys, as opposed to electronic games or consoles, made it easier to persuade their youngsters to do real chores when older.
And for wives and mothers, they often get almost as much out of their children as they do out of their partner!
Up to 13 per cent of men spend less than an hour a week helping out round the house and a further 18 per cent of lazy males only put in a couple of hours a week. While 14 per cent of children actually carry out around five hours a week of domestic duties to help out mum and dad, according to the research.
The work ethic also means kids are less likely to be told to 'clean your room' these days unless they were getting paid.
Only one in four (24 per cent) of parents made their children do domestic chores as a punishment for being naughty but 12 per cent say they made their children do it because they (the parents) are simply too lazy!
Jacky Brown at Sheilas’ Wheels car insurance, commented: "Making children work for money makes parents sound like they are running some kind of Fagin's gang but their intentions are good. Some genuinely believe it teaches children a work ethic and stops them being lazy and spoilt and expecting everything on a plate.
"But in the current economic conditions, a growing number are doing it to save money as the minimum wage does not seem to come into it when dealing with their own children."
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About Sheilas’ Wheels home insurance:
Sheilas’ Wheels provides both buildings and contents cover - with a contents no claim discount
- Free online access to the CreditExpert identity fraud detection and assistance service provided by Experian. Experian will monitor the customer’s credit report and send them alerts by text or email whenever there’s a significant change in their credit record. If someone does steal the customer’s identity and their credit record is affected, Experian will help and guide them through the process of restoring their credit record. This cover is available with either buildings or contents cover, to the first named policyholder.
- Alternative accommodation if utilities in the home, such as gas, water and electricity are lost due to events such as flooding and can not be lived in - for contents and / or buildings cover.
- New for old cover on clothes - reductions for wear and tear are not applied for clothing stolen or destroyed in the home (contents cover).
- Family legal protection - Free to policyholders for one year when bought online. Provides up to £50,000 of cover for legal assistance. It also provides assistance in finding emergency registered childminders while the insured person is attending jury service, and legal representation for a customer’s child if they do not gain entry to the school of their choice.
- Pest cover - optional additional cover for the removal of grey squirrels, wasps, and hornets’ nests, rats and mice from the home at just £1.67 per month.
- Optional Home emergency cover - cover for the call out charge and up to 2 hours labour and up to £100 (inc VAT) for parts and materials, and subject to an overall limit of £500 (inc VAT).
- For an additional premium, personal possessions cover away from the home provides cover for accidental loss, damage and theft of personal possessions that are temporarily removed from the home.
- Unlimited rebuilding sum insured.
- High market limits for contents in the garden - up to £2,500.
- High market limits for contents in outbuildings - up to £5,000.
Terms and conditions apply to Sheilas’ Wheels home insurance
Sheilas’ Wheels press contacts:
Niki Bolton, Corporate Communications Manager: 01737 235070
Asia Manzoor, Public Relations Officer: 01737 641305
Emma Lloyd, Communications Co-ordinator: 01737 641309
Adrian Webb, Head of Corporate Communications: 01737 641000
Email: pr@sheilaswheels.com
Visit the official fansite for Sheilas’ Wheels: www.ilovesheilas.com
An ISDN line is available for radio interviews.
Case studies are available on request.
Notes to Editors:
[1]Sheilas’ Wheels used the independent online research company Online Opinions who surveyed 1,000 of the UK’s parents, from across the country aged 18 plus between 19th - 23rd May 2008.
About Sheilas’ Wheels:
Sheilas’ Wheels was launched in October 2005 to offer women drivers cheaper car insurance and female targeted product enhancements. In February 2008, the brand moved beyond car insurance to also offer home insurance with product enhancements including free online access to the CreditExpert identity fraud detection and assistance service, alternative accommodation (buildings and contents cover) in the event of loss of utilities in the home (terms and conditions apply), new for old cover on clothes (contents cover) and family legal protection cover which also includes assistance in finding emergency registered childminders while the insured person is attending jury service, and legal representation for a customer’s child if they do not gain entry to the school of their choice (terms and conditions apply).
Sponsorship:
Sheilas' Wheels sponsors the ITV National Weather: "Whether skies are grey or blue, Sheilas’ Wheels could cover you."
