Yes to the labour decree: recruitment bonuses for under-35s and women, fair pay and protections for delivery riders

Furthermore, for permanent appointments of those under 35, the bonus provided for in the Cohesion Decree – which the Milleproroghe Decree had extended to 30 April – has been extended until the end of the year. The incentive, which is valid until 31 December for a period of 24 months, consists of a total tax relief of up to 500 euros per month if those under 35 are unemployed and fall within the category of ‘disadvantaged workers’ (€650 if the recruitment takes place within the Single Special Economic Zone). The incentive lasts for 12 months in relation to recruitment within certain categories of ‘disadvantaged workers’.

For women who are unemployed or have never been in employment, the 24-month social security contribution relief amounts to up to 650 euros per month. This rises to 800 euros if the woman hired is a permanent resident of the Zes Unica. The exemption lasts for 12 months for the recruitment of women who fall into certain categories of ‘disadvantaged workers’. As with young people, the recruitment of women must also result in a net increase in employment, and the company must not have made any redundancies in the previous six months. Within the Zes Unica, the exemption is up to €650 for 24 months for hires made up to December of individuals aged 35 or over who have been unemployed for at least 24 months. The exemption applies only to employers with up to 10 employees.

To facilitate the timely conclusion of national collective agreements, in the event of failure to renew them within the first nine months following their natural expiry date, and in the absence of any contractual provisions to the contrary, salaries shall be adjusted, by way of a lump-sum advance, to 50 per cent of the change in the IPCA-NEI (Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices excluding imported energy goods). In sectors characterised by high seasonality and variability in revenue – such as the tourism sector – and in those providing healthcare and social care services funded by and on behalf of the National Health Service (SSN), the amount shall be determined through collective bargaining and may not exceed 50 per cent. The parties, in exercising their contractual autonomy, shall establish appropriate procedures to ensure the regularity of contract renewals and mechanisms to guarantee adequate financial coverage during the contractual gap, taking the natural expiry date of the previous contract as a reference. These provisions apply to national collective labour agreements that expire from the date of entry into force of the decree, whilst for national collective labour agreements that have already expired, the provisions apply from 1 January 2027.

With regard to supplementary pensions, the proportion that can be received as a lump sum (i.e. in a single payment) upon retirement, rather than as an annuity – which had been increased by the Budget Law to 60 per cent of the total accumulated amount – returns to 50 per cent, and the option for staggered payment of the accumulated balance – that is, the possibility of receiving the lump sum in instalments over at least five years – has been postponed until 31 October. There are also changes to the governance of occupational and pre-existing pension funds: from the next renewal onwards, the administrative and supervisory bodies will remain in office for five financial years, and appointments may not be renewed for more than two consecutive terms.

For workers on digital platforms, in particular delivery riders, where facts emerge indicating the existence of powers of management and control – including through automated monitoring systems or automated decision-making systems – the employment relationship is presumed to be one of subordination, unless proven otherwise. The worker is entitled, upon request, to receive a clear explanation and a human review of any automated decisions that result in the restriction, suspension or closure of their account, the withholding of remuneration for work performed, or a change to the worker’s contractual status. In the case of work facilitated by a digital platform, the worker’s access to the platform may be granted via the public system for the management of the digital identity of citizens and businesses (SPID), the electronic identity card (CIE) or the national services card (CNS), or via an account issued by the platform itself to a specific tax reference number using a multi-factor authentication system, The transfer of one’s account or the use of an account by a person other than the account holder shall result in the imposition of an administrative fine of between 800 and 1,200 euros. The digital platform may not issue more than one account for each tax code, nor may it assign tasks to the same worker that are temporally incompatible. Any breach of this provision shall result in the imposition of an administrative fine of between 1,000 and 1,500 euros.

The exemption from social security contributions of up to 1 per cent, subject to a limit of 50,000 euros per year for each company, introduced by the Labour Decree for employers holding specific certifications attesting to measures supporting the ‘reconciliation of family and work, maternity and paternity’, following the parliamentary conversion process, it has been specified that this will apply during the three-year period 2026–28.

An amendment tabled by the majority has been approved regarding staff leasing: a worker employed on a permanent contract by an employment agency may be seconded on a fixed-term assignment, at the same client organisation, to carry out duties corresponding to the same level and category for a total period of 36 months, even if not consecutive, and in addition to the initial 24 months (unless the client’s national collective agreement provides for a different limit).

On a trial basis until 31 December 2029, the secondment – subject to trade union agreement – of workers receiving social safety net benefits is permitted, including between companies in different sectors, with the aim of ‘safeguarding employment levels or production continuity’. The maximum total duration of extracurricular work placements within companies belonging to the same group is set at 12 months. A grant of €130,000 in 2027 and €260,000 from 2028 onwards will be allocated to the Federation of Master Craftsmen to promote, amongst other things, workplace safety and guidance for young people on training and career paths.