Spanish State: Home Care Service Workers Take to the Streets in Valencia and Madrid
Featured image: Home Care Workers (SAD) workers march in Valencia. Source: Servir al Pueblo
On September 19, mobilizations were carried out by the Home Care Service (SAD) workers in many cities throughout the Spanish State. Correspondents from Servir al Pueblo were present to cover the mobilizations in Valencia and Madrid, and have shared reports from the ground.
Servir al Pueblo writes that the SAD workers have been mobilizing for years through strikes, encampments, demonstrations, protests in city council meetings, and more, but they are told to be patient – while they see how the years go by and their conditions not only fail to improve but, in practice, worsen. Servir al Pueblo writes that more and more workers are starting to understand that the only way to stop the predatory companies that dominate the SAD, and who are increasingly trying to exploit these workers, is to intensify the fight in the streets. Including the mobilizations on September 19, another mobilization is planned for September 26.
In Madrid, a rally had been organized as part of the national mobilization of the SAD workers, and Servir al Pueblo got the chance to speak to several workers present in the mobilization. They write: “They are fed up with the mistreatment they receive in many homes, where they are only wanted for deep cleaning. They are fed up with working for salaries that, in the best-case scenario—with decades of service—do not exceed 1,100 euros, although many earn no more than 800 or 900 euros for 30-hour part-time shifts that are then illegally increased through overtime or supplementary hours. They are fed up with their frequent injuries not being recognized as workplace accidents.”
One worker stated, when asked about the lack of support by the unions, referring to the rally in Madrid:
“I find it outrageous that all the unions—I’m speaking generally—haven’t shown a single union representative here today, and I think that’s a huge lack of respect, since they’re supposedly the representatives of home care workers on a works council in a company, whether it’s Domus, ASISPA, Serveo, etc. Every company has representation. None of the companies present here today have had a single representative. […] We are all home care workers , and we are all colleagues. We must unite, we must fight. Today, many sectors are taking to the streets, but we need unity. If we all unite, we can achieve anything. But without unity, we achieve nothing. Not our sector, not Healthcare, not Education. We’ll see you on the 26th, and hopefully, Madrid will start to rise again .”
In Valencia, a march had been organized, where several hundred people participated. The march started at Plaza del Ayuntamiento and ended at the Plaza de la Virgen, and along the way the SAD workers chanted slogans such as “When the Home Care Service (SAD) rises up, the whole country has to take notice!“
Servir al Pueblo writes that they have witnessed firsthand the nascent union movement of the precarious women-dominated sectors, which have been developing in recent years, despite difficult conditions that hinder these worker’s organization. In Valencia, as in Madrid, the absence of certain unions and social movements were noted, with the exception of CGT of Valencia, from which a representative held a speech:
“[…] They applauded us, but the applause has stopped; our rights haven’t. The Home Care Service sustains life, sustains families, sustains the long-term care system, but those of us who sustain it continue to suffer precarious working conditions. We don’t want any more applause, we don’t want pity. What do we want? We want rights, we want decent wages, decent working hours, recognized travel allowances, workplace health and safety—we want dignity!”
Servir al Pueblo concludes their article calling for their readers to support home care workers in any of the demonstrations taking place on September 26 and on subsequent dates in any city across the country.
