(Andrea Grossi CEO Ambienthesis) The new fixed-term contracts will become more expensive and subject to more constraints in the reform that will be introduced by the so-called dignity decree, the real first act of the new Conte government. In Italy, there are almost 3 million fixed-term contracts: Minister Di Maio now wants to make them more expensive and difficult to use by companies, with the aim of encouraging permanent hiring. Temporary contracts will therefore be more expensive with an increase of 0,5% of the contributions to be paid on the gross salary, every time the contract comes to an end and is renewed. This is an aggravation of the already existing cost of 1,4% of the gross salary used to finance Naspi (unemployment benefit). We are facing a disadvantageous formula compared to the permanent contract where companies pay 0,7% of gross salary. Following this line, precarious contracts will therefore cost more. Minister Di Maio also announced his intention to put a limit on the maximum number of times the fixed-term contract can be extended. Today this limit is set at 5 renewals over 3 years. Now it is thought of lowering the roof to four renewals. Once this threshold is exceeded, either the worker is hired for an indefinite period or will not be able to remain in the company. Among the hypotheses there is also that of extending beyond the current 120 days, the time limit with which the worker can challenge the contract and sue the employer.
The reintroduction of the so-called casual is also planned. Before the jobs act, companies hiring on a fixed-term basis had to specify in the contract the reason why a fixed-term contract was adopted rather than a permanent one. Now this specification seems destined to return, as a further instrument of protection against the worker who could then later challenge that motivation if not well founded or too forced. I believe that this kind of measures are likely to have the opposite effect of what we want to pursue. In the dream book it would be wonderful to always propose the so-called permanent position but it is already optimal from my point of view to be able to make temporary hires. Even for companies it would be desirable to proceed only with permanent hires because it would mean being able to count on a constant turnover. If, on the other hand, an order arrives for five months, it is unthinkable that a company can hire a worker for life.
Logically, measures like these risk leading to a further relocation abroad of Italian companies in search of more guarantees and safeguards.