Singalong

TESSERA
by A Lödöen & K Harris
(sung to the tune of 'Que Sera Sera')

When I was a young trust trainee
I asked my bosses
What will I find?
Will I find treasure?
Will I find gold?
This is what they said to me:
Tessera, sera
Whatever you'll find, you'll find
And honestly, we don't mind
Tessera, sera

Then as a site assistant, still
I had to ask them
What should I do?
Should I use mattock?
Should I use hoe?
I haven't got a clue
Tessera, sera
Whatever you'll do, you'll do
But please make it quickly, too
Tessera, sera

Then as a supervisor, still
I had to ask them
What should it be?
Should we use mattocks
Or JCB?
Please hurry answer me
JCB, CB
Whatever it'll be, it'll be
But it is the JCB
That will set us free

Then as a Project Manager
I was in meetings
All the day long
"You can have this bit"
"This bit is mine"
"We mustn't get it wrong"
Tessera, sera
Whatever that we'll decide
We never can relax
Skanska's on our backs

Now I'm Director of the Trust
Six weeks from now
We will go bust
We need some treasure
We need some gold
All that we have is dust
Tessera, sera
Whatever I'll do, I'll do
Whatever I say is true
Tessera, sera

We deserve a 60% rise

Whilst supporting wholeheartedly the petition for a decent wage for archaeologists and for an overhaul of the 'career structure' in our industry, I feel that we ought to say that trained site archaeologists are worth around £18k pa, with salaries raised accordingly for supervisors, project officers, specialists etc. That's around a 60% payrise.

The perils of Self-Employment

It's all very well the Petition for Change recommending a minimum wage of £280 per week but it's also important that diggers are taken on as salaried staff. I work as a subcontracted employee for £50 per day. This does not seem too bad compared to other units but works out a lot lower. I have to provide all my clothing: hard hat, viz vest etc. I have my hours dictated to me and also the invoice form that I have to submit to get my wages. I do not get paid leave. My wages in real terms are about £5.70 per hour. Being made unemployed from units like these also affects benefits. We need units to fully employ their staff even if it is just for a week.

I earn more as a Temp!

Your recent newsletter sums up the frustration that I am going though. I am desperate to get back into archaeology, but cannot because I can't afford such a large pay loss. Why do I get paid more doing simple, boring secretarial work than those who are actively unearthing, conserving and/or managing heritage? It's absolutely disgraceful and I'm heartbroken. Archaeologists should not only be paid more fairly for their hard work, but should also get more accolades for preserving and presenting history.