It’s not for nothing that social work has been called a ‘noble’ profession. If one can talk of a battle against the suffering brought about by life circumstances, social workers are in the trenches. They are at the frontlines on the margins of society, trying to help the vulnerable handle their difficulties, whether induced by poverty or poor education, family break-up or mental illness.
Social workers are employed by both government agencies and NGOs in schools, hospitals, prisons, residential homes, community services and other places. The profession is populated by dedicated individuals who serve the disabled and the terminally ill, the bereaved and the orphaned.
They help the lost find their way, facing all manner of obstacles – even the occasional violence – in their attempts.
If the ‘poor will always be with us’ – for which read ‘social problems will always exist’ – there will always be the need for social workers and in Malta demand has always outstripped supply.
However, according to the Malta Union of Midwives and Nurses, which represents them, a real crisis has recently developed. MUMN general secretary Colin Galea has spoken of a “grave” shortage in the public sector, with the numbers halved.
He has identified schools, the prison, community services and departments for the elderly as being among the hardest hit, blaming poor working conditions. The situation has prompted him to write to the Prime Minister calling for a new sectoral agreement covering social workers, a request which, judging by initial reactions, has little chance of being entertained.
It is not known whether government social workers are migrating to the NGO sector or are leaving the profession altogether for better paid jobs. One must assume, though, that low salary is a primary reason for the exodus. Union posturing aside, it can be argued that for the kind of work they do, involving high stress and constant threat of burnout, social workers are not adequately paid.
They enter government service at scale 10 whereas teachers enter at scale 9. In their demanding and often dispiriting job, for which they have trained just as hard as teachers, they face their own economic and psychological challenges.
That, in turn, heightens the chance of poor standards and practices creeping in, to the detriment of clients.
In a recent interview on TVM, Finance Minister Edward Scicluna gave a ‘what can I do?’ kind of reply in reference to the MUMN’s request. Granted, the government has a budget to balance and public sector employment is both fiscally and politically sensitive. But it would also make sense on both levels for a government that has vowed to make a real dent in financial and social deprivation to retain and even increase its social workers, whose job so often entails the alleviation of poverty.
Thankfully, the government has retreated from a draft amendment to the Social Work Act that would have forced new graduates to work with the government for two years to earn their warrant. The move appeared designed to fill the shortage through the back door. Eighteen NGOs criticised the proposal saying it would stop them from employing newly-qualified social workers. This was clearly not the way to go about it.
On the other hand, a re-examination of working conditions, being careful not to set off an avalanche of similar requests from other public sector employees, would appear justified given the dire circumstances. It would fall right in line with Labour’s declared aim of reducing deprivation – unless, of course, it was only playing lip service to the idea.