Subject: Defending Social Conditionality in the Common Agricultural Policy
From: "Victor Plyson" <[email-masked]>
To: "Karmen Joller - SOM" <[email-masked]>,Maarjo Mändmaa - SOM <[email-masked]>, "Info - SOM" <[email-masked]>, "Erkki Keldo - MKM" <[email-masked]>, <[email-masked]>, "info - MKM" <[email-masked]>
Cc: "LYNCH, Esther" <[email-masked]>, "REPETTI, Lorenzo" <[email-masked]>, "Ivan Ivanov" <[email-masked]>, "Victor Plyson" <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 29 Jun 2026 17:53:46 +0300

Tähelepanu! Tegemist on välisvõrgust saabunud kirjaga.
Tundmatu saatja korral palume linke ja faile mitte avada.

*	To the kind attention of the Estonian Minister of Social Affairs
*	To the kind attention of the Estonian Minister of Economy and Industry

Dear Ministers,

Dear Ms Joller and Mr Keldo,

We are writing to draw your attention on an important matter that concern 
farm workers and responsible employers in the agriculture sector.

Thanks to the introduction of Social Conditionality in the Common 
Agricultural Policy (CAP), the receipt of CAP payments has, for the first 
time, been linked to compliance with a set of labour rights, including 
occupational health and safety standards. This landmark reform reflects a 
simple and widely supported principle: public money should not subsidise 
violations of workers' rights.

Unfortunately, this important achievement is now under serious threat. 
Following the European Commission's proposal of July last year, which 
already weakened the principle of Social Conditionality, the Cyprus 
Presidency has now gone even further by proposing its complete removal from 
the Common Agricultural Policy (see 
<https://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-10721-2026-INIT/en/pdf> ST 
10721 2026 INIT - NOTE and 
<https://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-10367-2026-INIT/en/pdf> ST 
10367 2026 INIT - NOTE).

If adopted, this proposal would dismantle one of the most significant social 
achievements of the last EU legislative term and send a deeply negative 
political signal regarding the EU's commitment to protecting workers' 
rights.

Such a decision would be detrimental not only to farm workers, but also to 
the vast majority of responsible employers who comply with labour standards 
and currently face unfair competition from a minority who do not.

We are therefore sharing with you a letter addressed to the Estonian 
Minister of Agriculture by the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) and 
the European Federation of Food, Agriculture and Tourism Trade Unions 
(EFFAT), representing 45 million workers across Europe. The letter sets out 
in greater detail the reasons why Social Conditionality should be preserved 
and strengthened.

Social Conditionality is an important tool for raising labour standards in 
one of the most challenging and precarious sectors of the economy. The 
ongoing CAP reform should be an opportunity to 
<https://effat.org/in-the-spotlight/a-new-day-for-cap-effat-calls-for-a-more-social-common-agricultural-policy-post-2027/> 
strengthen this instrument, not to weaken, or even abolish it.

As this issue primarily concerns the protection of workers and the 
enforcement of labour rights, matters that fall within your ministerial 
responsibility, we call on your support to defend Social Conditionality and 
opposing any attempt to weaken or remove it from the Common Agricultural 
Policy.

We remain at your disposal should you require any further information.

Yours sincerely,

Enrico Somaglia                           Esther Lynch

General Secretary, EFFAT        General Secretary, ETUC