The inter-union of Vaucluse retirees does not know if it will be heard but it will, at least, be listened to by the prefect. The state representative will receive a delegation this Friday afternoon, a few days before the call for the rally, which will take place on Tuesday 3 at 10:30 a.m. in front of the prefecture. National demands find particular acuteness here. Because in a poor department, seniors are far from being spared. “ 1/5 of 60-74 year olds live below the poverty line, so we must be between 1 in 3 or 4 retirees below this threshold », figures Alain Grangé of the USR CGT.
Consequence, a significant recourse to food aid or a renunciation of care. “ Last week at the dentist, I heard a lady in front of me who said she had warned that she did not have the means to pay the excesses. », laments Michel Solbes, secretary of the USR CGT. “ The government makes the deliberate choice to endanger part of the population », agrees Alain Grangé. While on average, 44% of retirees receive a pension lower than the minimum wage, “ you have to pay complementary health insurance in full, unlike assets where the employer takes part of it », recalls Daniel Gressier, co-secretary of FSU 84 retirees.
The problem is also first of all finding a health professional. “ Between July and the end of the year, Avignon will lose 4 general practitioners », illustrates Laure Lambertin, secretary of the FO retirees section, tired of the refrain of a certain political-media class making retirees look like wealthy profiteers. “ We are not here to finishwe live quietly, we consume, we help, we are useful », she concludes.
