Child protection in Calvados: employees fight for their jobs and families

Located in the Guynemer district, Caen (Calvados)), l’association Amaelles works in the field of personal assistance. In particular, it has a service Childhood Familywhich follows around 200 children in difficulty, under prescription from Calvados Departmental Council.

A procedure for economic dismissal

In March 2024, the nine employees of this department learned of the plan to close it. Proposals for internal reclassification were made to them. “Monitoring children in difficulty and helping elderly people at home are not the same job…”, underlines a union representative.

“No handover is organized”

At the end of June, the closure of the service was confirmed by a procedure of economic layoff employees. A procedure that the employees contested before the interim relief judge of the Caen judicial court on Thursday, June 27, 2024. “The CSE (social and economic committee) was not informed or consulted under normal conditions,” maintains a union representative. We consider the procedure irregular. The referral to the court effectively suspends the procedure and the service continues its action while awaiting the judge’s decision, expected on July 18.

What will happen to the children we are monitoring? No handover is organized and, in any case, no association is able to absorb 200 children at once. Child protection is already suffering due to a lack of staff.

This employee cites the example of a family whose monitoring by the Amaelles Child and Family service was stopped, but who have no replacement solution.

They are awaiting action from the Department

After the hearing at the Caen court, the employees met Marie-Christine Quertier, the vice-president of the Departmental Council in charge of the childhood, integration and fight against poverty commission. “She assured us that the Departmental Council did not want this service closed,” relates the union representative. The Department will fund it for as long as it continues and believes that the pricing it is proposing is the right price.”

After these comforting words, the employees of the Amaelles Child and Family service are now waiting for action, and in particular a clear positioning from Jean-Léonce Dupont, the president of the Departmental Council.

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