I write to add my experiences on John Cassar White’s article on education (The Sunday Times, November 21).

I had a vacancy for a female quality inspector; age was not a problem. So I phoned the Job Centre and placed an advert.

Three young women applied. One arrived with a torn woollen jumper and looked as though she had not washed for a week, the second was wearing torn jeans and badly battered trainers. These two failed their interviews on appearance alone.

The third women came for her interview dressed immaculately. She said “Good afternoon, Sir” as we met. I showed her into my office and said, “You’ve got the job if you want it”. She replied: “But you haven’t interviewed me yet.” I said, “Anyone who comes as smartly dressed and is as politely behaved as you are can do the job I have in mind. Now I’ll show you round the factory and explain your duties; then you can decide.”

It costs nothing to be clean, smart and polite, and what is of paramount importance, especially here, is to make staff realise it is the customer who pays the wages, and he or she must be treated with dignity, whether they are wearing a dirty pair of overalls or a posh fur coat – they are the company’s livelihood.

This attitude is badly lacking in Malta’s business life. I go into a shop; there is a girl standing behind the counter.

The minute I enter she vanishes into an office or store room, and eventually when she returns, she barks: “Yes?” No ‘Good morning’, ‘Good afternoon’, or ‘May I help you?’ This attitude only gives a poor impression of the company and alienates the customer.