“Social rights, we need them. Peasants. Our rights are gone. If you’re sick your farm stops, if you’re sick, you die […] In sickness, you say goodbye, to your sheep and your poultry. Who will take care of our fields? Nothing for your children to eat.”
It was in song that around twenty members of the Peasant Confederation denounced the current lack of social protection for Var peasants, and more widely in the country. “Currently, we are entitled to 30 days of replacement in the event of illness or work accident throughout our career,” reports Camille Apostolo, representative of the agricultural union, before the Draguignan sub-prefecture, Wednesday December 18 2024. “It’s very little. And in the event of illness, the daily allowances don’t cover much. Without replacement, it’s the assured death of the farm, because the costs, They remain the same.”
Disease synonymous with death sentence for farms?
A situation well known by his colleague, Vincent Arcusa, a peasant baker based in Tourves. “I was injured at work. There was no possible replacement. The entire workload fell on my partner,” he says. “Luckily I have him by my side, otherwise the activity would have stopped dead in its tracks.”
“Some departments allow 90 days of replacements covered in the career, this is not the case in Var”continues Camille Apostolo, goatherd in Sillans-la-Cascade. “But this is not enough. We need a fundamental policy. Because our contributions depend on the selling price of our products and behind the social benefits are not up to the realities of the profession.” The two farmers are not very optimistic for the future, “especially with the austerity policies announced by governments.”
Pensions also on the table
Trade unionists also addressed the issue of peasant pensions, “on average 300 euros lower per month than pensions paid in other sectors.” Without forgetting the question of women. “Many did not contribute because finances did not allow it and only the husband or partner was registered. These are all farmers who will end their lives in precariousness”they denounced. “I am looking into buying back quarters. If this is possible, it would allow me to retire at 63”says Marie-Chantal Girard, sheep farmer in Bauduen. “Otherwise it will be 67 years, for years that I have already worked. But with a damaged knee, herniated discs, arduousness…”
“We do not want more investments in equipment, but an attractive social base, because we are going to have many operators retiring, who cannot be replaced otherwise”conclude the representatives of the confederation.
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