Readers' reactions

Two weeks ago in The THES... Valerie Atkinson argued that non-academic staff are not properly valued.

The existence of separate salary scales for secretarial/clerical staff, administrative staff and academic staff is simply inequitable. The highest salary an experienced departmental secretary can expect is about £20,000 - the starting point for the lecturers' scale. It is galling for experienced graduate secretaries to witness lecturers and research assistants at the start of their careers, with equivalent academic qualifications to their own, being recruited at higher salaries. At least graduate secretaries can develop their careers in administrative posts. Capable, intelligent people without a degree are excluded.

Helen Jacobs
Unit administrator
University of York