Saturday jobs

[JohnJames]

My first Saturday job was with Corona Pop in Tysley during 1969/1970. I went out on a lorry delivering bottles of pop door to door around Longbridge and Bartley Green. This was a paid job at a rate of two pounds ten shillings for a nine hour day. Back in that time when a pint of bitter was two shillings and large fifteen year olds were served in pubs, you could have a very good night out on this amount and still have enough left over for fish & chips on the way home. Other jobs at Corona were also available where gangs of youths went around sitting on crates on the backs of lorries (no H&S then!), trying to sell pop door to door and getting weekly orders, paid on commission. I started out this way before being promoted to a paid job riding in the cab. Great days really!

 

[Richard Dye]

My first Saturday job was with Corona Pop in Tysley during 1969/1970. I went out on a lorry delivering bottles of pop door to door around Longbridge and Bartley Green. This was a paid job at a rate of two pounds ten shillings for a nine hour day. Back in that time when a pint of bitter was two shillings and large fifteen year olds were served in pubs, you could have a very good night out on this amount and still have enough left over for fish & chips on the way home. Other jobs at Corona were also available where gangs of youths went around sitting on crates on the backs of lorries (no H&S then!), trying to sell pop door to door and getting weekly orders, paid on commission. I started out this way before being promoted to a paid job riding in the cab. Great days really!

Congratulations...……...That was a pretty good gig! 10 years earlier I made less than half of that and bitter was 1/6....

 

[mcarter32]

In 1968 I worked as a house porter at the Midland Hotel. I polished brass everywhere and vacuumed half a mile of corridor carpet (yes I actually paced it out one day). In addition to that I had to vacuum the downstairs Neptune Lounge and sweep the staff spiral staircase that ran from the lower level to the top floor. Happy Days...

Do you have any images or old newspaper articles from your time working at the Midland? I currently work at the Burlington (the old Midland) and would be great to share with my colleagues.

 

[Harry Flashman]

Do you have any images or old newspaper articles from your time working at the Midland? I currently work at the Burlington (the old Midland) and would be great to share with my colleagues.

I'm afraid not. All I have are the memories of a 17 year old, working during the summer holidays. There was a broad range of characters working at the Midland Hotel at that time (1969); everything from the lowly house porter (me) to the very affected general manager (let's call him Mr. Smith). In between were the chamber maids, the porters, the housekeepers, the engineers, the restaurant staff and banqueting managers. I may have missed some of course. I do remember getting lost during my first days at the Midland and ending up in the Burlington which I remember as very upscale. Naturally the word reached 'Mr. Smith' who gave me a apoplectic telling off for taking my lowly self to such an august area. Some years later, I was the sales manager of a Birmingham company and was in charge of the planning for a large event, which was to be held at the Midland. During the planning sessions, I interacted with 'Mr. Smith' on several occasions and found it amusing that he was, "yes, sir, absolutely, sir", to someone he had many years earlier derided and bollocked for getting lost in his hotel. Happy days.

 

[steveb]

JohnO,

You've obviously never tried harvesting olives after rain on sloping ground (olive bashing as we call it). You ache for weeks afterwards!

Maurice

Takes me back, when we moved to Aldridge from Kingshurst the only way you could earn money in the summer was to go fruit picking, for whatever was in season. The local farmer would come and pick everybody up in a horse box and take you to a small village called Stonnall, you would sit on a straw bales in the back of the truck, along with feral women (as someone else had mentioned) they used to play us young lads up terrible.

As for picking probably the toughest was spuds, it was back breaking work, but all the women had shopping bags and used to go home every night with a bag full of potatoes, sure the farmer knew but never said anything, to be honest some of those women were rough diamonds and if he had said anything they would have probably flattened him.

As for other fruit blackcurrants was a tough job, you were given a bucket and told to fill it and you would be paid 2/6, it would take nearly all day to fill a bucket, and you couldnt fiddle it as they emptied the buckets out into trays before you got paid.

Another tough one was gooseberries, you had to wear gloves as there were thorns/spikes and you got cut to ribbons by them, arms and hands bleeding at the end of the day.

And lastly and probably our favourite was strawberries before the advent of pick your own, i am sure we used to eat more than we picked and they tasted divine, all the kids had bright red about an inch wide around their mouth, and couldnt face another strawberry, hard work but happy days great memories.

 

[steveb]

Do you have any images or old newspaper articles from your time working at the Midland? I currently work at the Burlington (the old Midland) and would be great to share with my colleagues.

Back in 68 i would be about 14 and i used to work for a guy in the fruit and veg trade for 10 bob a day, and we used to deliver to the Burlington, he had a small fruit and veg shop about half way down Burlington Passage, and if i remember correctly the deliveries to the kitchens was via an underground passage in Stephensons Place, used to take a fair amount of produce there and the main chef always insisted on the very best products.
He also had the contract to deliver to other restaurants and hotels if anyone remembers them, one which was very good was an Italian restaurant called La Cappana on Hurst Street and another one which was a Chinese on Smallbrook Queensway called Ying Wa, very impressive out front but another story when you went round the back to deliver.
And finally the Albany Hotel again they demanded the very best of products, and i always kept an eye open as it was known pop stars used to stay at the Albany when performing in town, my claim to fame was i saw the Spencer Davis Group who were big at the time. Think the photo taken was in the middle of Smallbrook Queensway with the Albany to the left of shot.

 

[Richard Dye]

Takes me back, when we moved to Aldridge from Kingshurst the only way you could earn money in the summer was to go fruit picking, for whatever was in season. The local farmer would come and pick everybody up in a horse box and take you to a small village called Stonnall, you would sit on a straw bales in the back of the truck, along with feral women (as someone else had mentioned) they used to play us young lads up terrible.

As for picking probably the toughest was spuds, it was back breaking work, but all the women had shopping bags and used to go home every night with a bag full of potatoes, sure the farmer knew but never said anything, to be honest some of those women were rough diamonds and if he had said anything they would have probably flattened him.

As for other fruit blackcurrants was a tough job, you were given a bucket and told to fill it and you would be paid 2/6, it would take nearly all day to fill a bucket, and you couldnt fiddle it as they emptied the buckets out into trays before you got paid.

Another tough one was gooseberries, you had to wear gloves as there were thorns/spikes and you got cut to ribbons by them, arms and hands bleeding at the end of the day.

And lastly and probably our favourite was strawberries before the advent of pick your own, i am sure we used to eat more than we picked and they tasted divine, all the kids had bright red about an inch wide around their mouth, and couldnt face another strawberry, hard work but happy days great memories.

I became a expert plumb and apple picker (eating), also learned how to fall of ladders, thankfully on to grass

 

[Janet Hunt]

My first job was at a Greengrocers on the High street in Kings Heath. Started by just being the clean up girl, sweeping the shop and flattening the card board boxes and tidying the yard, and cleaning the fish counter down at the end of the day. Also had to make the tea for the serving staff. Soon progressed to be able to sell to customers, trouble was a I was put on the fish counter all day...I stunk by the end of the day and used to discourage my mates from meeting me from work.

 

[Brummie a long time ago]

My Saturday job was a Halfords in Acocks Green at the tail end of school, so 16 17 years old. I remember the raised area in one corner with a glass barrier from which the manager surveyed his territory. Also a small 'office' on one side, just big enough for one staff member, where customers who bought bikes etc 'on the drip' would pay their instalments through a little window, recorded and signed for in their paying book.
Staff access was upstairs, up a slope off the road, and I well remember gunning my Lambretta LD up that slope. Skid lid off, hair combed (I had some then), uniform jacket on, smile on, and then down internal stairway to the customers at ground level.
The front shop window was set up to a photograph supplied by head office of their window stage. This was regularly changed to suit their promotions of the moment. Window had to match the photo.
Two memories stand out after this time. First was when a chap came in for some white spray touch up paint for his car. "Which white is it Sir ? " "White, white is white innit ? " I asked him the car make, that reduced it to about 5 different whites. Eventually got the right one. He was fine about it, didn't realise there were so many.
The second is when someone came in for a camping gas stove, the little one with a single cartridge. Also wanted a cartridge, and would I fit it for them. One has to unscrew the burner bit before shoving the cartridge up the bottom, then screw it back in. Nobody told me that. Hey ho, that stank a bit, and was potentially dangerous, luckily I was by the door. Only did it once.
Time there was good, good management and permanent staff. I learnt a lot. Finished because next level of education was calling.

Andrew.

 

[steveb]

Back in 68 i would be about 14 and i used to work for a guy in the fruit and veg trade for 10 bob a day, and we used to deliver to the Burlington, he had a small fruit and veg shop about half way down Burlington Passage, and if i remember correctly the deliveries to the kitchens was via an underground passage in Stephensons Place, used to take a fair amount of produce there and the main chef always insisted on the very best products.
He also had the contract to deliver to other restaurants and hotels if anyone remembers them, one which was very good was an Italian restaurant called La Cappana on Hurst Street and another one which was a Chinese on Smallbrook Queensway called Ying Wa, very impressive out front but another story when you went round the back to deliver.
And finally the Albany Hotel again they demanded the very best of products, and i always kept an eye open as it was known pop stars used to stay at the Albany when performing in town, my claim to fame was i saw the Spencer Davis Group who were big at the time. Think the photo taken was in the middle of Smallbrook Queensway with the Albany to the left of shot.

Another memory of those days working in the fruit and veg business, was going to the wholesale market to collect whatever the boss had purchased, my job was to collect it and take it back to the van and load it, he usually parked in Jaimaca Row, and i had to use a barrow to transport the goods. Now using one of those 2 wheeled barrows for anyone that knows is a simple process if loaded correctly.
The trick was getting the load balanced, too much weight at the end where the handles for pulling where and you couldnt pick it up, and too much weight at the back end and like a see saw it would tip lifting the newbie operator about 3 foot in the air, much to the amusement of the old hands that could see what was going to happen.
However after a good laugh they would all muck in and help pick everything up and show you the correct way to load the barrow.
A very hard working enviroment, but an absolute great set of lads, who would always help each other out, and at the end of the working day which was around lunchtime (they started at about 03:00) a good many would head for the Vaults for a drink before heading home.

Companies the boss used to buy from was Bousfields, Baragwaneth,Francis Nicholls and many more but my memory is fading.

Just as an after thought i must have handled hundreds of boxes of Guernsey tomatoes, they used to come in a wooden flat box that used to stack, and nearly every wholesaler on the market used to sell them, not seen those for years, and reading recently nearly all tomatoes come from Spain, i wonder what happened to Guernsey tomatoes.

 

[Rabster]

As a young 14 year old I started Saturday work in a George Mason grocery store delivering groceries on a pushbike with basket and small wheel at the front, large at the back and NO gears! I returned to the shop for the next load and a lady customer noticed my uniform and asked if we had any sage and onion stuffing. I didnt know but went to the store and found some. I shouted from the back of the shop "Who wants stuffing?"..........needless to say all the ladies turned round! It was later explained to me what I had said was not correct but live to tell the tale. I grew up quite quickly after that day!!!

 

[Ray Griffiths]

Milkman's lad also, paper boy 77 papers morning and night Sundays

hi ade no wonder the veg shop where you worked seemed familiar i lived a stones throw away from it and at the time you were working there ...i was at the bottom of booths farm road in cramlington road been married a couple of years by 76...here are a couple of pics of that row of shops taken in 64 and 65

View attachment 135767View attachment 135768

I used to in Cramlington Road 1963 to 1978 lived at 167 used to go to Fish and chip shop how it’s changed. We left after having the wheels on car stolen a six week old new Cortina got up on May 1st to find my on bricks.Police come took details said they had just been to another victim they found his the good news was his crocklock was OK but no a lot of his car left. We put the house on the on Tuesday is was sold by Friday and we moved 8 weeks later

was a killer as some folks had more than one paper took two trips to load up as my bag got to heavy, if you lived at 43 Ryde Park Road and missed you paper at night that was me, I will come clean sometimes I sold it, got to see some revealing things in the morning route

 

[negritaspider]

I never had what you would call a Saturday job as mine (and some school friends) involved working after school a couple of days a week. We worked for a tailor called Maurice Levine who had a workshop in Corporation Street where he took in clothing alterations for various Companies such as Burtons, Dunns and John Collier. It was our job to take the items that needed altering to out workers, the clothes would be put in a suitcase and off we would go to catch whichever bus we would need to get us to where they were needed, the furthest one being in Sutton Coldfield. We would then collect any clothes that were ready and bring them back to Maurice so they could be pressed and taken back to the shop. I cannot remember how much we got but if we worked on the Saturday morning Maurice would drop us home after we had finished

Reddi

My mom was one of the outworkers - I think it was called Master Tailors?? in 1965... after my dad died.
I'd often help her stitching hems or sleeves, and sometimes I'd drop the stitched items off to the shop.

 

[negritaspider]

I worked for mom's friend in a newsagents also, on Saturdays, same year, aged 13.

 

[negritaspider]

and did paper rounds -ah, it's all coming back... blxxdy slave labour, it was!!

 

[steveb]

Another memory from the past was going into the rag market on a Saturday and watching the traders selling wicker baskets of crockery, they were very good at it and used to have a big crowd of onlookers, a bit like Del boy they used to work the crowd with their spiel, and when they got to the end there was lots of people holding their money up to buy, my mom included, guess who had to carry the box of crockery ? then it was over the road to the fish market where every week she would buy a packet of Mcrae smoked kipper fillets (remember them) and some crabs legs for us kids, then it was to the bus stop to get the number 14 bus back to Folliot Road Lea Hall, by then my arms were pulling out of there sockets carrying the crockery, even though i moaned at the time (not too much or it was a clip around the ear) if i could turn the clock back i would do it all again, really enjoyable child hood even though times were hard.