Sowing discontent?

The project is now the subject of inter-ministerial discussions and the first phase is expected to be unveiled in June.

Every farmer in Poland currently makes the same modest contribution to KRUS - around zł.258 per quarter - regardless of the amount of land cultivated or profits earned. The reform aims to change this, alleviating a burden on the state budget, which covers the shortfall in paying for farmers' medical insurance and pensions.

During a press conference last week, Agriculture Minister Marek Sawicki said contributions to KRUS needed to be varied. It has not been decided yet whether the contribution size will depend on profits or farm size.

"Until now, farmers paid a stable social insurance contribution rate, much lower than the majority of society pays to ZUS [the Social Insurance Institution] without a medical insurance contribution. And they get the same social benefits as ZUS payers," explained Julita Posmyk, director at a branch of Zachodniopomorskie voivodship's Agriculture Consulting Center (ZODR).

Farmers belong to the only professional group in Poland which does not pay for medical insurance. Poland's Commissioner for Civil Rights Protection has already lodged a complaint with the Polish Constitutional Tribunal on this matter, saying it is unconstitutional that one group does not pay for health insurance yet receives the same benefits as the rest of society.

Poland's farmers are not likely to favor the reform. "The changes which are likely to be implemented will not be good for farmers," Posmyk told WBJ.

"After the changes, which will include a medical insurance contribution, farmers will pay much, much more," she added.

According to Agriculture Minister Sawicki, the KRUS system is bad for farmers. Their contributions are low, which keeps their pensions low. The average retired farmer gets around zł.600 a month.