LIKE our colleagues who are employed at voluntary aided Catholic schools in Warrington as MDAs (dinner ladies), we, who are working in church of England aided schools, are also having to deal with this same double standards of payment equality in relation to our rights to receive back pay to bring our salaries on par with other personnel who do a similar job within the education system at state schools.

It is totally irrelevant that you work within a state school or an aided school system - we do exactly the same job, receive exactly the same training and are required to follow the same rules and regulations as issued by the education authority.

My co-workers and I work at St Margaret's Infant/Primary School in Orford which is a church aided school and we are very annoyed to find that we are exempt from receiving any back pay. This rebuff of our right to receive this money smacks of double standards of employment within this town and a rebuke to an employee's equal rights of pay and standards within their employment.

It as also come to our attention that some of the cooks who supply the meals for the children at lunchtimes in the same halls/rooms in which we work preparing prior to mealtimes monitoring of the children during mealtimes and clearing up after meal times, have already received their back pay.

My colleagues and I feel so incensed at this lack of equality that we are seriously considering industrial action in this matter. It interested me to read the reply in the article in the Guardian on February 21, referring to using £3.5 million from the town's emergency funds to cover the back pay rather than go to an industrial tribunal.

Could it be that they are aware that they are not an equal opportunities employer after all and were worried about the ramifications of national exposure?

It was irrelevant to state that they our not our employer. Our wages arrive on payslips that state Warrington Borough Council, letters concerning our employment are on Warrington Borough Council letterheads and even a letter issued on February 21, saying Dear colleague, ref equal pay' (to which we are apparently not entitled) was issued to me on Warrington Borough Council headed paper.

Surely the council has a duty of care to uphold equal rights and equal working conditions for all workers within their remit?

MRS SHIRLEY HEWITT On behalf of St Margaret's MDAs