New school, same problem: that house that can’t be found, not at a reasonable price. Every year for six years. And he, who is 62 years old and has a wife and children at home, is also forced to live with a colleague on this school bell occasion. After having risked sleeping in the car.
How does his story in the School begin?
«I am originally from the South and worked for many years in a ministry. Then, for health reasons, I had to change jobs and became an Ata (administrative, technical and auxiliary staff ed.). At first I won a position here in the province of Grosseto and moved, waiting to be able to move the family, in search of stability. Finding accommodation was the biggest hurdle, and it still is. For me as well as for many colleagues».
What difficulties do you encounter in finding a home?
«The first time, after searching in vain, I had resigned myself to sleeping in the car; only thanks to the union (I am a member of Uil) did I manage to have a roof, otherwise I really wouldn’t have known what to do. But every year it’s the same story. First of all, it seems impossible to have a twelve-month lease, especially in tourist locations, then the owners’ requests are very specific regarding references, and then it is very difficult to find accommodation at an affordable price».
Out with the tooth, out with the pain. How much do you earn?
«I earn 1,440 euros net. I’m looking for a house of 70-80 square meters, but the rents offered to me range between 400 and 500 euros per month. Counting all the other fixed expenses (water, gas, electricity), last year I reached about 800 euros per month. In the end, very little remains. Over the years I have used up my savings, about 20 thousand euros».
A provocation: couldn’t you make extra money?
«It is not allowed. The law establishes a certain total number of hours below which it is allowed to work in the School and do other things as well. If that limit is exceeded, even slightly, it is useless to look for a side job».
You boast solid credentials, certainly not common. Don’t they open some more doors for you when you look for a house?
«I always make the bank transfer on the 23rd of every month. And I have a work contract, I am a State employee. But this does not seem to be enough; nor my past at the ministry, for what it’s worth. The owners I have met have rarely been willing to negotiate the rent, they just offer it: take it or leave it. And as for leaving…».
What do you mean?
«As I said, I have practically toured the entire province. And it has happened (and still happens) that the tenant is asked to leave the house by June 15, because tourists have to come. Some even go as far as mid-May. Conversely, when it comes to moving in, despite having a signed lease contract, you have to wait and always for the same reason: tourists have just been there and the agency still has to send someone to clean. This happened just these days to a couple of colleagues».
How have you organized yourself to face these difficulties?
«Even if I wanted to return to the South, there every transfer seems to be possible only for those who can benefit from law 104. In the end I did what we all do a bit: “we found each other” with a colleague in the same situation and we live together sharing expenses, so we manage to get by. This housing issue, for us precarious workers, is a precariousness within precariousness, a continuous race with a starvation wage».
What would you say to a young person who wants to embark on the path in the School?
«I see young colleagues of 35-40 years who, faced with these conditions, decide not to start a family: too risky. My children study at university, I hope they have a wonderful future».
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