Santa Cruz de Tenerife, 6th March. (Europa Press) –
Hermann Luis Dait Yanes and Víctor Hernández Chinea, representatives of the CCOO Trade Union Section, together with Alberto Jesús Padrón Ruiz, Elizabeth Herrera Rodríguez, and Luis Manuel Rodríguez Pérez, employees of the Children’s Area within the Ministry of Social Welfare and the Children and Families sector, have met with the Common deputy, Lola Padrón. They have alerted her to the situation, highlighting that they are “dealing with approximately 12,000 cases in the Autonomous Community.”
Previously, the Diputación del Common had requested information from the Ministry in response to ongoing complaints from the workers, who voiced their urgent need for additional technical and human resources.
Currently, they are drawing attention to a widespread mismanagement of situations involving helplessness, referrals, and receptions in all their forms, stemming from staff shortages. They often attend to numerous children, sometimes up to 100, while their proposed ideal is 25 or 30 minors per technician “to provide them with quality support,” as noted by the Diputación.
The representatives also affirmed that a primary reason for the shortcomings in community prevention and development policies is the lack of resources available to the Canarian municipalities.
Consequently, they advocated for each case to be reviewed by a specialised multidisciplinary team, incorporating professionals from psychology, social work, and social education. “Currently, given the volume of minors, this is almost impossible,” they stated.
They also addressed the issue of unaccompanied minors, highlighting that nearly 6,000 of them remain on the islands without sufficient personnel and lacking the necessary conditions to work efficiently.
In light of this situation, Lola Padrón committed to persist with oversight to ensure compliance with child protection and adolescent welfare laws.
“As vulnerable individuals, we must safeguard their rights to prevent deterioration, as children represent the future of our society. There is immense talent that we must nurture for a prosperous generation, benefiting the entire Canarian community,” she emphasised.
