More checks in the agricultural sector and innovative investigations into digital labour trafficking

In 2025, 597,710 workplace accidents were reported to INAIL, an increase of 1.4% compared with the previous year. And there are still over a thousand fatal accidents each year. What measures have been put in place to reverse this trend?

The issue of accidents remains a key concern and requires an integrated approach. When interpreting the data, however, it is essential to consider the context correctly: the increase in accidents in absolute terms is set against a significant increase in the workforce, which results in a reduction in the accident rate. This in no way diminishes the significance of the phenomenon: every accident represents a person and their network of relationships. However, it helps to interpret the data correctly and to tailor more effective prevention measures. The Inspectorate’s work is carried out along several lines. On the one hand, the number of inspections in the most at-risk sectors – such as construction, agriculture and industry – has been stepped up, with a further increase in inspections recorded in 2025. On the other hand, the work is increasingly focused on prevention and targeted action, through risk analysis and the integration of the databases of INL, INPS and INAIL, which can now also draw on information contained in the National Portal on Undeclared Work, which also incorporates the findings of inspections carried out by the Carabinieri Command for Labour Protection and the Guardia di Finanza. For 2026, the plan envisages a further strengthening of inspections in the sectors with the highest incidence of accidents, with checks on the main sources of risk: equipment, work organisation, contracts and subcontracts.

The fashion supply chain, work via digital platforms and agriculture appear to be the sectors where cases of worker exploitation are most frequently reported, partly due to the use of subcontractors. What measures are being taken in these sectors?

The Inspectorate has gradually stepped up its efforts in the sectors most at risk. In agriculture, in 2025 there was a 13.5% increase in inspections, as part of a structured strategy to combat undeclared work and illegal labour recruitment. We have launched a summer programme to step up monitoring activities in the agricultural sector, starting in June. As regards complex production chains, such as the fashion industry, the focus is primarily on contracts and subcontracts and on the correct mapping of employment relationships throughout the supply chain. These are often complex and multi-faceted operations, which enable us to tackle phenomena such as labour exploitation and illegal labour brokering using investigative tools that are more effective than routine checks. In this context, collaboration with the judicial authorities results in high-profile operations, carried out in support of key judicial bodies such as the Milan Public Prosecutor’s Office, thereby helping to strengthen the overall effectiveness of the enforcement system. With regard to digital platforms, the 2026 programme envisages a strengthening of measures against so-called ‘digital caporalato’, through advanced analytical tools and innovative inspection techniques, designed to detect less visible but rapidly expanding forms of irregular employment.