the social and solidarity economy in the face of the health crisis

The social and solidarity economy (ESS) brings together more than 2,000 structures in Côte-d’Or and employs 22,500 people. This means that 12% of Côte-d’Oriens employees work in this sector. On the occasion of Days of the economy differently which take place Friday and Saturday in Dijon, the president of the Regional Chamber of Social and Solidarity Economy (CRESS) Tatiana Desmarest provides an inventory of the sector.

ESS is a set of structures that combine “social utility, solidarity, economic performance and democratic governance” recalls Tatiana Desmarest. Companies, associations, mutual societies, foundations that have no shareholders and whose profits serve to perpetuate the structure or go directly into the pockets of employees.

Faced with the health crisis, these companies find themselves in particular difficulty: “for many, these are structures that have no own funds, which are financially fragile. So even if they were able to call on partial unemployment and regional and departmental aid, we are very worried about the start of 2021. We will need the support and the financial commitment of the public authorities for them. years to come, particularly in the field of personal assistance “ says Tatiana Desmarest.

Future plans

At the same time, this health crisis has revived values ​​such as solidarity, so dear to the ESS. “We will bounce back, it is generally in the SSE that all social innovation is created, and especially in times of crisis. For example, we have 8 Côte-d’Orian companies which have completely adapted their operating methods to provide masks and gowns in hospitals “, praises the president of CRESS.

And since the first confinement, the Côte-d’Orians have turned more and more to short circuits and players in the local economy. A boon for the ESS which is launching an online shopping platform which precisely favors socially responsible purchasing.

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