LETTERS
From T. R. Gibson, John A. Yates, David Nathan, Tibor Szamuely, Jane Degras, T. M. Higham, D. C. Rose, W. T. Bromley, John Levy, Miles Copeland III, Stuart Montgomery, Andrew Filson.
The welfare rackets
Sir: I am a middle-aged teacher living alone with my youngest child. In the last five years, because of family disasters, I have had to use several branches of the social services. From my experience I am con- vinced that Robert Odams's article (6 September) is totally misleading.
I have at times been treated with what seemed deliberate meanness, but generally with blank indifference. A tribunal found me guilty of receiving a wrong payment when one of the children moved from school to a coaching establishment and although it was agreed and recorded that my failure to report was caused by a mis- understanding and carelessness under stress my family allowance was withdrawn at a time when I was unemployed and living on £10 4s. (for both of us), out of which I was paying £4 in rent for two unfurnished rooms. I was assured that I was not entitled to another penny.
When I found work this summer (the Business and Executive Office, in one year, gave me one lecture and notice of one job for which I was not qualified) I had to have a row in the street with the local `ss man' to get from him £6 10s. for a sports coat to go to work in. As for other help, I was refused a payment for the removal of my books (my tools) and for two years I have been paying the remover by instalments.
As I keep house I have the labour exchange's permission to seek part-time work only. My pro rata part-time salary (about £14 per week before deductions) is still more than I can obtain from any social service office.
Finally, is it surprising that the immorality of the capitalist system is encouraging immorality? I have just come off a five- month job helping with short courses for foreign students. It was heavy, quite com- plicated teaching. I have a degree diploma and twenty years' experience of this kind of work. 'The country' earned over £280 millions this year from foreign Visitors: many of them come to learn English. My salary (full-time) was £20 per week, before deductions.
If you want • to keep capitalism you must expect all except those who pride themselves on their integrity to adopt its moral assumptions.
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