According to a study by the Institut de l'élevage (Idele), dairy farmers in France have experienced a decrease in available time since 2010, despite the growing use of automation on farms. The "Work Balance" study, presented at Space 2026 in Rennes in September, found that the available time for dairy farmers has dropped by 134 hours between 2010 and 2026. While automation has increased significantly—most farms now use milking robots, compared to very few in 2010—this does not necessarily translate to more free time for farmers. Jocelyn Fagon, an engineer at the Idele, explains that robots offer greater flexibility but also require farmers to keep them running at full capacity to be profitable. This often means increasing the number of cows on the farm, which can lead to more work overall. The farms in the study have also undergone changes in production and structure. They have increased milk output by 220,000 liters, added 21 dairy cows, 17 units of grazing land (UGB), and 6 hectares of agricultural land (SAU), while reducing the area dedicated to crops by 6 hectares. The number of farms surveyed has dropped from 190 to 51, according to the Inosys network, suggesting a reconfiguration of the dairy farming landscape. Gwendoline Elluin, a study officer at the Idele, notes that nearly 16 percent more farms now employ workers, with 59 percent of farms in 2026 having employees, while farms relying on volunteer labor have decreased by 14 percent (now 47 percent of farms). However, the situation varies depending on the type of farming system. In mountain regions, for example, fewer farms have employees, highlighting differences in how work is managed. Seasonal tasks tend to be easier to delegate to employees, but more unpredictable or on-call work is still typically handled by the farmer. Even with the use of milking robots, some tasks remain the responsibility of the farmer, particularly in specialized systems. Elluin adds that the data shows a clear trend toward economies of scale, meaning that larger farms are generally more efficient. However, the study is ongoing, and researchers are still investigating how some farms manage to optimize their working time more effectively than others. The study also suggests that combining these findings with economic data from individual farms could provide deeper insights into the challenges and opportunities facing dairy farmers. While automation offers new possibilities, the overall workload and management strategies continue to evolve, reflecting broader changes in agricultural practices and labor dynamics.