EQUALITY is climbing up the political agenda as an issue of importance.

No one will argue with the statement that we are all equal in the eyes of the law and everyone is enti-tled to being treated with dignity and respect. Our differences have to be taken into account when it comes to gender, age, talents, character, energy and religious beliefs. Allowances have to be made in society for those areas where they conform to civilised standards

Equality of opportunity, however, today is a patchwork quilt at the mercy of postcode lotteries.

Depending on where you are born and into what circumstances gives some an advantage which has to be recognised and provision needs to be made to counteract such an imbalance.

However, when it comes to more equal treatment in rewards for one's labour, an argument can be made for equality of payment in that every human being deserves to have enough to meet both phys-ical and psychological needs while job satisfaction should come from using one's talents and gifts to the full. However, that is not a road we will go down.

Instead, let us ask the question as to which jobs would create more difficulty in the community if cer-tain sectors took prolonged action by withdrawing their services.

I will provide no answers but ask you, the reader, to think of what rewards should accrue to various areas of employment.

Here is a short list of areas which invite you to make a value judgment on those workers' worth to the community: refuse collectors or surgeons, teachers or MPs, nurses or sportsmen, public transport workers or shop workers, CEOs or factory floor operatives. You can make up your own list to come to a decision as to how well rewarded or valued any particular work sector should be.

Think of the community as a human body, where every part of the human body interacts to form a working whole.

Some sections are more important than others but co-operation and harmony tick all the boxes to cre-ate an effective and efficient organism. That will only result from establishing a transparent system in which workers at all levels feel valued and respected by society.

It is vital that we come to terms with the understanding that a community functions better when the different parts of the community operate together in a synchronised fashion instead of leaving some feeling disrespected and undervalued within society, while others reap gargantuan rewards with all the kudos and benefits accruing from such an ill-divided reward system.

Denis Bruce,

Bishopbriggs.