Angelo Zambelli‘s article is available on Lexology.com e Leglobal.law
Italy: What is the main news set forth by the Labor Decree recently approved by the Italian Government?
The most innovative profile of the Labour Decree is the revision of the discipline of fixed-term employment contracts.
The previous regulation was significantly strict, in particular regarding the reasons required to ground fixed term employment contract lasting more than 12 months.
The new discipline extends the range of reasons that may ground the fixed-term contracts lasting at least 12 months but not exceeding 24 months. Such reasons are:
- those established by collective bargaining agreements (at national, territorial or company level).
- The technical, organizational and production reasons individuated by the employer and employee in the contract, in the absence of regulation by collective bargaining agreements (this faculty is granted only until December 31, 2024).
- Other employees’ substitute needs.
Another interesting novelty provided by the Labour Decree is the lightening of the obligations set forth by Legislative Decree No. 104/2022 which – less than one year ago – implemented the EU directive no. 1152/2019 on transparent and predictable working conditions.
Under the former discipline, the employer was burdened to mandatorily notify the employee accurate information at the time of the initiation of the employment relationship and prior to the start of the employment activity. Specifically, individual employment contracts had to include provisions concerning trial period, employees’ training, leaves and holidays, the compensation and its method for calculation and payment, the working hours, the procedure/ form/ and terms of notice in the event of termination, entities that receive social security and assistance contributions.