BRUSSELS -David Petrie, ALLSI president, and ALLSI lawyer, Prof Lorenzo Picotti, met senior EU officials Monday to ask the Commission to press Italy to end discrimination of foreign lecturers.

 The European Commission officials was headed by Armindo Silva, Director  Employment and Social Legislation, Social Dialogue  who is responsible to Commissioner László  Andor. The crucial meeting was held Monday, Jan. 27 at 2:30 pm in Brussels. Mr Silva told Prof. Petrie that the Commission will make a decision on the case within two months.

 At a previous meeting of the European Parliament’s petitions Committee, held in Brussels  Nov. 25, Prof. Petrie gave evidence of ongoing discrimination by Italy in its universities against hundreds of lecturers.

 The Commission lawyer , Francisco Perez-Flores, then asked for the petition concerning  lettori in Italy to be closed. This was opposed, however, by the Roumanian MEP Victor Boştinaru. The MEP asked to see lettori pay slips as a simple way of proving whether the discrimination was ongoing. Mr Bostinaru was supported by his other parliamentary colleagues. YOU TUBE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1x_yCngy6XQ

 Prof Petrie subsequently sent the commission pay slips which show that after 29 years of service he earns less than a newly recruited Italian at the same pay grade.

 The purpose of the meeting Monday was to hear expert opinion from Prof. Picotti and ask the Commission (guarantor of the Treaty) to pursue the government of Italy until it ceases discriminating and brings its law and practice into line with 6 previous judgments of the ECJ .

 A meeting scheduled for  last Tuesday between the Association of Foreign Lecturers in Italy (ALLSI) president and Italian Ministerial officials in Rome was cancelled at short notice and has been re-scheduled for next week.

 British Minister for Europe David Lidington said recently he had reached an agreement with the Italian Education Minister Maria Carrozza to pay the lettori compensation for the the discrimination they have suffered.