Bit of a surprise this morning when I got to work - our February payslips were all ready and waiting for us, yay! :o)

But my unbridled joy was soon tempered when I looked at the 'Deductions' column; I worked out (and confirmed it when I got home) that after income tax, NI contributions, pension contribution and union dues, my total deductions this month surpassed my gross monthly salary on my very first payslip from when I started work in June 1989...!!! I've never thought about it like this before, but that sort of puts things into perspective - OK, wages and salaries have obviously gone up in twenty-one years, but to be paying back to various places more than my pre-tax monthly income for my first month's salary is a sobering thought...eeeek!!

Helpfully, our payslips have the address and phone number of our local tax office should we wish to avail ourselves of their services :o))