agreste

Agreste cahiers n° 36 - décembre 1998

In 1997, 1 403 000 permanent workers work on agricultural holdings.

In 1997, 1 403 000 permanent workers work on agricultural holdings. Their number has decreased by 30 % in 9 years, as did the number of farms. They are on the one hand 680 000 farm holders, half of whom work full-time, one fifth have another gainful activity, and another fifth are pensioners. On the other hand - within the framework of joint holdings - 68 000 « co-farmers « , three quarters of whom work full time. Last, 308 000 spouses, among whom 220 700 women, and 207 000 other family members also take part in agricultural occupations, mostly on a part-time basis. The workforce of permanent agricultural wage-earners, 141 000 in 1997, has been increasing since 1995, after decades of steady decline linked to the development of mechanization.