Textuality » 4LSCA InteractingJSchiff _ Briefing paper 30.11.2020
by - (2020-11-30)
Up to 4LSCA - DAD: Week November 30ieth - December 5th, 2020
ITALIAN NATIONAL LABOUR PROFILE
General legal framework
Defence of workers The Constitutions defends all workers rights, starting from the right to work to its’ protection in every form and application and claims Italy to be a Democratic Republic founded on labour.
Contracts of employment Every contract of work is supposed to be of indefinite duration, if not specified the expiring time and can be based on grounds such as:
If employees have to keep working over the expiring date of the contract or are re-hired in short time after it they are given an allowance or receive an indefinite-expiration contract.
Severance payment After the dismissal or resignation of an employee, they have right to an allowance called “trattamento di fine rapporto”
Hours of Work The limit number of hours an employee can work every week is regulated in the Constitution, which sets at 40 hours this limit. If they are compelled to work over this number of hours they must be given an extra payment, only in exceptional cases. Paid leave Every worker has right to at least one day of rest every week, which can be shifted on special occasions if compensated, other than 4 national holidays and others, where employees get paid with their usual salary. If workers are asked to work during vacation time, they shall be paid with double salary over an addition up to 50% of their regular wages. Commonly, workers have right to at least 4 weeks of paid leave, except for domestic workers, who only get 8 days; usually vacation time is chosen by the employee but can be shifted by the employer. Maternity leave and family protection Female employees perceive 80% of their monthly salary during the maternity minimum period, and recently approved laws give to fathers the right to a paid leave too. In case of adoption, both parents have right to a 10-months period of paid leave after the actual introduction of the child into the family.
Other leaves Workers have right to a fully paid leave in case of sickness, consequently to a suspension of the contract, reached through collective bargains, also based on the ground of the employee’s seniority. Employees have also right to special leaves on special occasions of important family meetings, with or without payment. Students have also right to up to 11 months of unpaid leave to take exams. Young workers The minimum age a person may start working is 15 years: minors’ wealth on working places is ruled by articles recently introduced, which provide their security on the workplace. Equality As it is written in Art.3 of the Constitution, all the citizens are equal before the law without discrimination without race, sex, religion, language, personal or social position. For this reason, dismissals based on discriminatory grounds are severely prohibited and null. Cassa integrazione guadagni The “Cassa integrazione guadagni” is a state fund aimed to help workers whenever the enterprise they work for cannot afford paying their salaries, in extreme situations beyond their control:
Protection in case of insolvency In the case where the enterprise must declare bankruptcy, employer’s claims have priority over workers’ in order to protect the society, only if:
Employees earn an allowance in case of employer’s insolvency, given by the Wage Guarantee Fund, administered by the National Social Security Institute, which also pays in the case where the bankruptcy is not enforced by a judge. Trade Union Regulation The right to join unions and associations is given by the Constitution. There is no law that regulates the association’s recognition, so they are free to organize and bargain to employers even without being officially recognized. The Worker’s Statute gives workers association right at the workplace, except to military staff and police. Associations have provincial and regional organs, called vertical organizations, while national unions join in horizontal organizations. Employers join three federations: industrial, commercial and artisan.
Anti-union practices Employers should let workers be free to exercise their right to strike and association at the workplace, if they do not, a judge is supposed to force them to stop anti-union behaviours. If the employers still refuse to recognize these rights, they must be fined to 3 months of jail or a fine up to 20000€ Unions can trade agreements at provincial, regional, and national level, but only the parties who have signed an agreement. If an employer is part of an agreement, his or her employees are covered by it too. Workers who are not part of a collective agreement shall still be paid a rate not less than the one established for that category. Representation The Worker’s Statute recognizes to workers the right to be represented at plant level, for this reason representatives are elected, who have right to:
Public employees have a different system of representation Strikes In article 40 of the Constitution it is given workers the right to strike, but there is a large freedom to strike. Strikes occurred on grounds of public essential services shall guarantee a minimum service, and the strike should be regulated by the administration or the representatives.
Lock-out When the employer locks out workers from the working place, he must pay wages as he or she breached the contract, however, if it is consequent to a strike this regulation is null. Labour disputes Labour Courts follow different procedures from normal case laws, since 1929 all labour cases are dealt by professional judges and follow special procedural rules. Since 1998 public servant cases are brought to labour courts.
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