Without being a priority demand, the question of agricultural pensions has just resurfaced thanks to the angry movement of the peasants. Monday January 22, Arnaud Rousseau, the president of the FNSEA, mentioned it to point out two difficulties. One – identified for a long time – relates to the level “destitute”, according to him, pensions paid to former operators. The other concerns the delays in the implementation of a reform whose aim is precisely to improve the amount of benefits. “It is the credibility of public speech [qui est en jeu] », declared the head of the main union in the profession. His comments show that the case constitutes a backdrop to the uneasiness that has been expressed for several days.
Mr. Rousseau did not broach the subject on his own initiative. Guest of France Inter, he reacted to a listener’s questioning. “Agricultural pensions are the lowest of all sectors of economic activity”he affirmed, emphasizing that they are located, in ” most “ cases, around 1,000 euros, ” sometimes less “. “After a life of work”it’s revolting, he said, in essence.
His anger is all the more intense since Parliament tried to provide solutions by adopting, in February 2023, by a unanimous vote of both chambers, a bill. Supported by Julien Dive, Les Républicains de l’Aisne MP, it aims to determine, from 2026, the basic retirement of “non-agricultural employees” (farm managers, spouses of collaborators) based on the twenty-five best years and no longer according to the entirety of their career. This mechanism is supposed to be more advantageous than the one it replaces, while aligning with the rules which prevail for private sector employees and self-employed workers affiliated to the general system.
The problem is that the government had to submit, three months after the promulgation of the text, a report “specifying the modalities of implementation” of the new device. However, the document in question has still not been produced. “It’s a year later, there’s nothing”, denounced Mr. Rousseau on Monday. And to add: “I hear politicians say: “We are interested in your questions, we talk about them often.” The reality is that as I speak to you, on pensions, we are not moving forward. »
An imminent release?
The fact that deadlines are not respected also annoys Mr. Dive. However, the Aisne MP explains that he very recently reconnected with Matignon. “The Prime Minister’s services now assure us that the methodology, initially expected for the summer of 2023, will be presented in February or March”, he explains. As if the situation was about to unravel in the face of the rising pitchforks.
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