Act on fair remuneration and collective bargaining approved
The Law No. 144/2025, which delegates the Government to adopt, within six months of the entry into force of the measure, one or more legislative decrees aimed at achieving the following objectives, was published in the Official Gazette of the Italian Republic on October 3rd 2025:
- to ensure fair and equitable remuneration for workers;
- to combat the phenomenon of underpaid labor;
- to encourage the renewal of national collective agreements;
- to counter unfair competition aimed at reducing labour costs.
In particular, regarding fair remuneration, the Government is tasked with identifying, for each category of workers, the most widely applied national collective bargaining agreements based on the number of companies and employees, and with considering the minimum economic treatment set out in these agreements as the minimum pay to be granted to all workers in the same category.
In the case of employees of companies that do not apply collective agreements, the minimum economic treatments provided for by the collective agreements applicable to similar worker categories will be extended to these employees.
The Government is also required to provide tools to progressively promote the development of second-level company bargaining, in order to “tailor” bargaining to the varying needs across the country.
Dismissal for failure to pass the probationary period: if the agreement is null, the worker is entitled to reinstatement
The Court of Cassation, with judgment No. 24201 of 29 August 2025, held that if the nullity of the probationary agreement is established in judicial proceedings, the worker dismissed for failing to pass the probationary period is entitled to reinstatement in their position.
The case concerns a worker who contested her dismissal during the probationary period, arguing the nullity of the agreement as it lacked a specification of the duties subject to probation.
The Court of Cassation established that if the nullity of the probationary agreement is found, the termination by the employer for failing to pass the probationary period falls within the cases of dismissal without justification due to non-existence of fact, and therefore, in such cases, the only applicable protection for the worker is reinstatement.
Legitimate contracting: the client may limit themselves to general decisions in managing the contractor’s employees
The Court of Cassation, with order No. 16153 of 16/6/2025, established, among other things, that, in the case of contracting, it is the contractor’s responsibility to organize the production process using their own workforce, exercising actual and not merely formal managerial authority over the workers.
Therefore, according to the Court of Cassation, a contract is deemed unlawful whenever the contractor makes the worker available to the client without a real organization of the work itself, merely carrying out administrative management tasks of the employment relationship.
On this basis, the Court of Cassation rejected the worker’s appeal, considering that, in this case, the client company had carried out only general activities, such as defining the areas where deliveries take place, without handling the individual work performance of the contractor company’s employee.
AI Law in force since October 10th 2025
The Law No. 132 of 23 September 2025, titled “Provisions and Delegations to the Government in the Field of Artificial Intelligence”, aimed at harmonising Italian regulations with European legislation on Artificial Intelligence, has been in force since October 10th 2025.
The purpose of the law is to establish the “guiding” principles for research, experimentation, development, adoption, application, and use of AI systems and models.
Among the many topics addressed are those relating to the use of AI systems in the world of work. In this regard, the law underlines the importance of AI, for example, in enhancing the quality of work performance and productivity, reiterating that the use of such tools must be safe, reliable, and transparent, and must not be conducted in a manner contrary to human dignity or in violation of personal data privacy.
Also in the field of organization and management of employment relationships, the use of AI is permitted, but with respect for the inalienable rights of workers and non-discrimination.
Finally, the law provides that the use of AI systems in intellectual professions must be aimed solely at carrying out instrumental and support activities for the professional activity itself.
Furthermore, to ensure the relationship of trust between professional and client, information relating to the AI systems used by the professional must be communicated to the recipient of the intellectual service in clear, simple, and comprehensive language.
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