[A humble request: If you can, please donate to help me carry on tracing word histories. Thank you.]
The British-English colloquial, disparaging noun jobsworth designates a person in authority, especially a minor official, who insists on adhering to rules and regulations or bureaucratic procedures even at the expense of common sense.
This noun is from job’s worth in the British-English colloquial phrase to be more than one’s job’s worth (i.e., to be more than one’s job is worth), meaning: to be liable to cost one one’s job. This phrase is especially used in the context of defending adherence to rules and regulations even at the expense of common sense.
The earliest occurrence of the phrase to be more than one’s job’s worth that I have found is from The Pieman of Hong-Kong, a short story by ‘Chris’, published in The People. A Weekly Newspaper for All Classes (London, England) of Sunday 19th March 1905 [page 8, column 4]:
“I offers the pleeceman a tip, but ’e sez, ‘It’s more than my job’s worth to haccept money.’ I being a generous sort of chap then hoffers ’im a drink. He likewise refooses that, with tears in his voice.”
These are, in chronological order, the earliest occurrences of the noun jobsworth that I have found:
—Note: These early occurrences indicate that this noun originated in the British rock- and pop-music milieu of the mid-1960s:
1-: From More than his job’s worth—and just you try and beat him!, by Anne Nightingale, published in the Evening Argus (Brighton, Sussex, England) of Monday 23rd August 1965 [page 8, columns 5 & 6]—the author uses Mr. Jobsworth as a generic name, and, on one occasion, a Jobsworth to designate a person in authority:
If I start talking about pop on a Monday you’ll think I’m writing “Spin With Me” 1 on the wrong day, but one of the Animals 2 has come up with an invented character called “Mr. Jobsworth.”
Mr. Jobsworth is to be found everywhere. He’s the man who says: “I’m sorry, sir/madam, it’s more than my job’s worth.”
You will, as likely as not, have met Mr. Jobsworth in a uniform. It will vary with the job he happens to be doing.
Sometimes he will not let you park in an unauthorised area because it’s more than his job’s worth. He will turn up again at a railway barrier when you haven’t had time to buy a ticket and are about to miss a train. If you ask to be let through he will say: “I’m sorry; it’s more than my job’s worth.”
Mr. Jobsworth is always to be found where passes are needed to reach point B from point A. You haven’t got one, and with a slow shake of his head he will say: “More than my job’s worth.”
The same Mr. Jobsworth, though he has many faces, is apparently always in dread fear of losing his employment.
Actually I don’t think that is the real reason at all. Mr. Jobsworth just doesn’t see why he should help anyone; in fact almost goes out of his way to be obstructive. But he doesn’t wish people to know this, so “It’s more than my job’s worth” is his ever-faithful excuse.
What’s so annoying is that this ploy Mr. Jobsworth uses invariably works. “More than my job’s worth” suggests that if he should do you a favour he will get the sack, be unable to keep up his mortgage repayments, go on the dole and put the kids out on the street. Since few people would wish even the most evil Mr. Jobsworth that kind of fate, they slope quietly away, and Mr. Jobsworth has won again.
I have never yet managed to beat a Jobsworth at his own game. I have tried calling the manager and confronting him with Mr. Jobsworth. Mr. Jobsworth will then come out with his other up-the-sleeve remark: “I’ve got my instructions.” They always say that. Try reasoning with Mr. Jobsworth, and he’ll say: “I’ve got my instructions.”
There’s nothing really one can do about it. But next time someone says: “It’s more than my job’s worth” you’ll know whom you are talking to and what you are up against!
1 The British journalist Anne (later Annie) Nightingale (1940-2024) was at that time writing a pop-music column, called Spin With Me, in the Brighton Evening Argus.
2 The Animals are a British rock-band formed in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Northumberland, England, in 1962.
2-: From Barred in a bar: I never thought it would happen to me!, by Anne Nightingale, published in the Evening Argus (Brighton, Sussex, England) of Monday 20th December 1965 [page 8, column 1]:
Last week, […] I was […] in a famous Fleet Street drinking establishment.
The apparently unbroken tradition of many years is that women are allowed on the premises on condition that they sit meekly in the lounge, and do not attempt to stand at the bar.
When I was taken there the lounge was full, so the only alternative was to stand at the bar. Within seconds a Mr. Jobsworth character was at my side telling me, as a policeman would, to move on. No amount of reasoning that the lounge was full had any effect. “Rules are rules” was the answer I got.
3-: From The Small Faces 3 Special, published in Jackie (London, England) of Thursday 25th March 1967 [page 19, column 1]:
THE FACES HATE JOBSWORTHS
A jobsworth is the name given on the scene to a bloke who sticks to petty rules saying, “If I did different, it would be more than my job’s worth.”
“For example,” said Plonk, “we were on a train trip to Manchester. At breakfast, I wanted fruit juice with my cornflakes. The jobsworth waiter said it was fruit juice OR cornflakes—and to give me both was &c., &c. Anyone would have thought I had asked for the flipping Crown Jewels.”
3 The Small Faces were a British rock- and pop-band formed in London in 1965; Plonk was the nickname of Ronnie Lane (1946-1997), who was the bassist and co-founder of the Small Faces.
4-: From the British weekly music magazine Melody Maker (London, England) of Saturday 12th September 1970 [page 29, column 4]—as quoted in the Oxford English Dictionary (December 2024), s.v. jobsworth, n.:
If you are a taxi-driver, jobsworth or policeman, you will now be able to understand hippie lingo.
5-: From On the road again, by Barry Nettleton, about a travelling group of musicians and their roadies, published in the Hull & Yorkshire Times (Hull, Yorkshire, England) of Friday 5th November 1971 [page 4, column 7]:
The roadies are struggling with the equipment, up three flights of stairs. The group will be back at 7 pm for a sound balance. The caretaker, more commonly known as a jobsworth, confronts the roadies.
Can’t put that there, don’t scratch the floor, leave those tables there and various other comments utter from his mouth. They calm him down by agreeing that he is only doing his job but they have to do theirs.
word histories 