Absenteeism in Valencia's Justice System Continues, According to Report

The absenteeism remains the same, according to the report

The September 21st broadcast by Cuatro antiestéticatured a report on absenteeism in public administration. The scenario was not new: the Valencia Justice City, which had previously been portrayed in a 2018 program for the same reasons. Years later, what is described is exactly the same. Several civil servants, according to the account aired, continue abandoning their posts. And the citizen trying to sort out paperwork keeps running into the same wall: an appointment that never materializes.

What changed since 2018: turnstiles and computer check-in, according to one version

Some changes were made, according to a circulating account: after the first report, access turnstiles were installed and computer check-in was implemented. However, according to that same version, the trap did not disappear: it mutated. The employee no longer clocks out at the door; they go to their post, validate entry on the computer, and leave, leaving the equipment running. The system registers presence where there is no one. It is the administrative version of putting a mannequin in the chair.

The program also showed, according to that account, a symbolic scene: an employee who, when filmed outside her post, allegedly called the police. It is advisable to underline this in conditional tense, as it describes a conduct mentioned by one participant and not an officially accredited fact.

Why does the appointment become the bottleneck?

The prior appointment is the second front of the issue. The report trinc citizens trying to process their retirement through the INSS (National Institute of Social Security) without success and portrays the difficulties in securing appointments at SEPE (Public Service Employment Office). Some argue that the system, besides managing demand, allows public attention to be concentrated in a few time slots and remain free the rest of the time. This is a suspicion, not proven fact. What is clear, however, is the effect on those waiting: the administration ceases to be a service and becomes an obstacle course.

Where are the civil servants and where are they missing?

One participant presents the most uncomfortable diagnosis, which does not blame the front-line employee but rather the distribution of staff. They argue that in agencies like SEPE, INSS, Treasury (Tesorería), Immigration (Extranjería) or Tax Office (Hacienda), the workload is constant—they resolve thousands of files daily—while in other locations, the urgency is minimal and the staff complement is sufficient. The logic, according to that version, would be to move personnel from where they are not needed to where the bottleneck is structural. The cost is paid by those who cannot secure an appointment.

One participant even recalls an anecdote from Ramón y Cajal, who allegedly rejected the official car with an argument that sounds like science fiction today: not to place another penny on the shoulders of the Spanish people.

The analysis stalls right here. With turnstiles, digital check-in, and time control, abandoning one's post should be materially impossible. Yet it continues to happen, according to that account. And those who manage to secure an appointment do not know if they will find someone on the other side of the counter.