WAGES
SIR,—In his interesting review of The Social Foundations of Wage Policy Mr. Brian Inglis is unfortunate in his choice of the pro- fessional league footballer as representative of a person who receives no extra reward for extra skill. Although a maximum wage exists in the profession, by no means all players receive this and the average wage paid in the First Division of the league (which contains the majority of the more skilful players) is considerably higher than that obtained in the Third Division.
If the substantial fees paid for international appearances, maximum benefit payments, talent money, etc., are taken into account, it is clear that the income of, for example, Stanley Matthews or Billy Wright considerably exceeds those of the run-of-the-mill profes- sionals.
If to this we add 'perks' in the form of fees for newspaper and magazine articles, radio and television appearances and so on, it is evident that the outstanding footballer is capable of commanding a premium.—Yours faithfully.
D. 1. WEATI1ERHEAD
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