According to a Dares study, workers in the "second line", whether they are farmers, bakers, cashiers or maintenance workers, are more concerned than all employees by precariousness and trying working conditions.

Less well paid than the average in the private sector, on the other hand, they feel equally or even more useful.

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They are delivery drivers, bakers, cashiers, maintenance workers, workers ... Since the start of the Covid-19 crisis, they have been called "second line" workers.

They are the ones who held the economy at arm's length for more than a year by going to work face-to-face despite the health risk, because they were considered essential for the proper functioning of daily life.

In all, there are 4.6 million employees in 17 professions.

A population whose working conditions are much more difficult than average, according to a study by Dares, the statistics department of the Ministry of Labor.

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Precariousness and complicated schedules

Dares has retained 17 job categories in its definition of "second-line workers", including farmers, market gardeners, workers (construction, handling, agro-food), road hauliers, drivers, butchers. and bakers, cashiers, maintenance workers and home helpers. Heterogeneous professions but which have several points in common, starting with a fairly marked precariousness. The workers of the "second line" are thus more often in CDD (10.5% against 7.5%) or in temping (7.2% and 3.1%) than the average of the employees of the private sector. 

Overall, the working conditions of these professions are more difficult than average.

These employees are more subject to part-time work: 26% of employees are concerned against 18% on average in the private sector.

They are also more often mobilized on Sundays (19% work at least ten Sundays a year compared to 14% on average), at night (8% do at least 50 nights compared to 5%) and in split schedules (8% have working days. work cut in half against 6%).

Finally, we must add unpredictable schedules that can change from month to month.

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Low wages but a real sense of usefulness

In addition to precariousness, workers on the "second line" are also more exposed to risks. Some 61% of them say they are subject to at least three physical constraints, against 36% for all employees in the private sector. The same goes for exposure to fumes, dust and dangerous products. As a result, they report twice as many accidents at work than the average (20% against 11%), a proportion drawn upwards by construction workers.

So many risks, but low wages: 1,630 euros net per month on average for workers in the "second line", against 2,330 euros for all employees in the private sector. The range goes from 1,286 euros for household help and home help, to 1,967 euros for skilled workers in public works. However, in these 17 professions, the satisfaction index in professional life is almost identical to the national average: 6.7 out of 10 against 6.9 (six professions are above 7). In detail, the difficult working conditions are offset by a generally very high feeling of social usefulness, especially among home helpers and household helpers (91%).