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Employment Law in Italy

Employment Law in Italy

Every local or foreign citizen working legally in Italy must sign an employment contract, in accordance with the provisions of the Italian employment law. The employment contract, which has to be signed by both the employer and the employee, must contain information related to the employee, taxes which have to be paid by both parties, the profession of the employee and his main rights and obligations deriving from the position occupied in the company.

The employment process is regulated by the local authorities and companies hiring employees have to comply with the Italian legislation. Foreign investors interested in hiring employees in Italy can receive further details on the provisions of the employment legislation from our Italian law firm.  

If a foreign or local citizen is working for a company in Italy, the employment contract will be concluded according to the Italian employment legislation. At the same time, the employment contract of an Italian citizen working in a foreign country will be concluded under the employment law stipulated by the legislation applicable in that country. 

Categories of employees in Italy

The Italian employment legislation distinguishes between several types of workers, depending on their relationship with the company with which they collaborate and the type of contract they have signed. 

The most common category of employee is the subordinate employee, who receives a monthly salary and who is subordinated to the managers of the company, in accordance to the employment contract he or she has signed. The subordinate employee can perform an intellectual or manual work for a company, under the stipulations of the Italian Civil Code, Article 2094. 

According to the employment legislation, a subordinate worker is entitled to several employment rights, such as holidays, sick leave, maternity leave and other benefits.

In May 2014, the local authorities have changed several provisions related to the duration of a contract. As such, companies can now hire temporary personnel with a fixed-term contract for a period of 36 months, which can be granted with five extension periods, if the job performed by the employee refers to the same activity. The fixed-term contract is signed for persons who will replace company’s employees, in the following situations: 

– the employee is absent due to injuries or illness;

– the employee is on materny leave;

– the employee registered in a mobility program. 

A director in Italy can hire termporary personnel under fixed-term contracts in the limit of 20% of the total number of employees in the company. 

Self-employed workers don’t have a subordination relationship with an employer; they work independently for a remuneration given by a company, in exchange for the service or product delivered under the stipulations of a contract. The self-employed  workers legislation is provided by the Italian Civil Code, Article 2222.

The legislation applicable to self-employed workers changed starting from 1st of January 2016, offering them more of the rights received by subordinate workers, if the services provided by the self-employed person are given in a continuous manner.

The 3rd category of workers is represented by commercial agents, who are self-employed workers whose goal is to conclude contracts in a certain area of interest.

If you need further information on the types of workers which can be employed in Italyour Italian lawyers can provide you with further information. 

Those who want to buy a house in Italy are advised to contact our Italian lawyers. Experience and professionalism are on our business card and we can take care of all the legal aspects related to the verification of the documents of the chosen property. we can also represent clients in front of the notary when the sale-purchase contract is signed. We can also represent our customers with a power of attorney if they cannot travel to Italy for the procedures involved in buying a property.

Italian incentives for hiring employees

Foreign investors interested in opening a company in Italy should know that the local legislation offers several incentives to companies which hire certain categories of workers. In addition, the government offers subsidies for companies which create new jobs on the Italian market

Companies can receive incentives if they hire the following categories of workers: 

  •  workers aged between 15 and 29 years, who have signed specific types of contracts;
  •  employees over 50 years old who have been unemployed for long periods of time and women unemployed for 6 to 24 months;
  •  disadvantaged citizens.

If you need more information about the employment law in Italy or legal assistance for hiring employees, please contact our lawyers in Italy.