The Official College of Social Work of the province of Las Palmas has denounced the "job insecurity" that is being experienced in the Social Services of the institutions of Lanzarote, which "are not covering the ratios of professionals per citizen." This, he says, is generating "extreme workload" working conditions for social workers, while at the same time "harming citizens who come to the different public services."
In a statement, the College recalls that "the recommended care ratio for information, assessment, guidance and advice services of municipal social services is one Social Work professional for every 3,000 inhabitants", and that in the face of the effects of the pandemic, "the appropriate thing is even to lower that ratio to one professional for every 1,700 inhabitants", which is far from being achieved. And in the case of hospitals, it indicates that there should be a Social Work professional at least every 40 beds.
Given this situation, the professional entity asks public administrations to get involved and take actions to expand the Job Position List of the Social Work group. "Political leaders usually say that making a call for positions or a job bank is very complex, and in the end they maintain job insecurity, using temporary employment companies, approving special agreements or employment plans, instead of using public job calls that guarantee transparency and equal opportunities, and produce more job stability," warns the College.
Therefore, it asks the public institutions of Lanzarote to "prioritize the political task of strengthening public services, which enables attention to the current demands and needs of the population, with labor policies that guarantee sufficient personnel and job stability in an area such as Social Services that has a demand that is not only permanent but growing."
The Lanzarote Social Work group recalls that article 29 of the current Statute of Autonomy, which speaks of rights in the field of Social Services, states that “all people have the right to access the benefits and services of the public social services system of public responsibility under equal conditions.”
"Job insecurity and the lack of personnel in the Social Services areas in the institutions of Lanzarote means that this article is not being complied with, and the growth in the demand for these services and the queues to receive food or resources in NGOs after the crisis caused by the pandemic is worsening the situation. We believe that the citizens of Lanzarote have the right to have their demands and requests attended to in a timely manner, in form and with quality. And for this, it is also essential that there are enough personnel in stable conditions," he warns.
