THE ECONOMIST December 17^th-23^rd 2005, p.18, letter

SIR – The barons who run Italy’s university fiefs are indeed the most overpaid and underworked teachers in the world. Language Faculties, for instance, teach for two hours and 45 minutes per week for 30 weeks of the year. Their research is subsidised by the state and published in local corner shops, the open market being out of reach due to the pitiful quality. Thanks mainly to non-Italian lecturers, called lettori, who teach for 12 hours per week for a fraction of the pay, some students do learn something. The European Court of Justice, which has issued four previous judgments in favour of the lettori, recently heard an important case in which Italy gave a lame-duck defence of 18 years of job and wage discrimination against us based on nationality.

DAVID PETRIE

Association of Foreign Lecturers in Italy

Verona