Another Spanish law ignored: employment for the disabled

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SPAIN The Spanish Constitution says that there should be equality of opportunity among all Spaniards. And the Law of Integration of the Disabled of 1982 supposedly obliges businesses with 50 or more employees to employ people with some disability at a minimum of 2% of its payroll, classified as such. However, organizations defending the rights of the disabled say that this is very far from the reality, which is becoming increasingly noticeable during the present financial crisis and its inevitable cutbacks. They say that the list of businesses ignoring Article 38 of the Law has grown immeasurably>>>

Endesa cuts power to handicapped centre because council owes money

PROVINCE/Villamartín (EuropaSur) The electricity supply company cut power to the village's handicapped centre, whose bills are paid by the Council, because it is owed money by the town hall. "We pleaded with them, for humanity's sake, not to touch the essential services, but they did," said Villamartín's vice-Mayor Juan Carrero. The students, children and adults, at the centre had to spend the day, one of the coldest this winter, outside in the sun because there was no heating indoors. Other municipal buildings or offices were also cut off. The parties came to an arrangement for payment -through an emergency loan from the Junta- and power went back on in the afternoon. "The least they could have done was to warn us about the cut, so we could tell the students not to come in," said one of the monitors in charge of the physically and mentally handicapped at the centre.