Santa Cruz Home Help Staff Plan Protests Following Surge in Sexual Assaults

The Home Help Service (SAD) in Santa Cruz de Tenerife is facing a crisis following the recent sexual assault of a staff member. According to Diario de Avisos, this is the eighth such complaint filed in just over a year. In response to what they call "systematic institutional abandonment," staff members are planning protests for this October.

The issue goes beyond the violence itself; workers are also frustrated by a lack of support from those responsible for their safety. In this latest case, Mutua Universal refused to classify the assault as a work-related accident, claiming they need a court ruling first and directing the victim to Social Security instead. The works council has condemned this decision, arguing that it leaves the victim—who is suffering from severe anxiety—without the necessary legal and psychological protection.

The incident has also exposed flaws in safety protocols. Although the worker reported the assault to the police and sought help through the Emergency Device for Assaulted Women (DEMA), the company managing the service, Atende, has reportedly failed to provide the psychological support required by its own equality policy. Union representatives argue that this administrative inaction allows aggressors to act with impunity, as no sanctions are being applied to users who commit these offenses.

The situation is particularly alarming given the scale of the service: 300 professionals, 280 of whom are women, support nearly 1,300 people across the city. Many of these workers earn roughly 1,000 euros a month, and because these attacks are not recognized as work-related accidents, victims face pay cuts while on sick leave. With no preventive measures in place—such as security for high-risk home visits—staff are warning that without urgent intervention from public authorities, the violence will only continue to escalate.