Fixed -term contracts, the narrow on the reason | The referendum explained

On 8 and 9 June the referendums on the issues of work and citizenship are voted throughout Italy. The number three question concerns the Jobs Act and aims to modify some Rules on fixed -term contracts Which, according to CGIL, affect about 2 million and 300 thousand people in our country.
The change is in fact a close to the obligation for companies to indicate the causals for fixed -term contracts up to 12 months. Currently the Legislative Decree n. 81/2015 allows you to take on a fixed term, within the maximum term of duration of the 12 -month ratio, without specifying a reasonthe so -called causal, to justify the term use.

The historian

The obligation of causals for fixed -term contracts up to twelve months He had been eliminated in 2015 with the Jobs Act of the Renzi government and then reintroduced in 2018 with the Dignity Decree of the Conte government. The last change dates back to 2023 with the Meloni government’s work decree. In the text, now in force, it is excluded for renewals and for extensions the need for the reason for contracts up to 12 months while new causals have been introduced for contracts with duration between 12 and 24 months.

In case of victory of the yes

So what could change with the referendum? If the « yes » prevails, companies also for fixed -term contracts within 12 months will have to put the reason for which they opt for a fixed -term contract rather than indefinitely. In the event of a contestation at the registered office, the judge will be called to verify the actual existence of the reason given by the employer for the term hiring.

The question

In the referendum card we will read: « You want to repeal article 19 of Legislative Decree no. 81 containing « Organic discipline of employment contracts and revision of the legislation on the subject of tasks, pursuant to article 1, paragraph 7, of the law 10 December 2014, n. 183 », paragraph 1, limited to the words « not exceeding twelve months. The contract may have a higher duration, but in any case », to the words « in the presence of at least one of the following conditions », to the words « in the absence of the provisions referred to in the letter a), in the collective contracts applied in the company, However by 31 December 2025, for technical, organizational and productive needs identified by the parties;  » and to the words « b bis) »; paragraph 1 -bis, limited to the words « lasting more than twelve months » and the words « from the date of exceeding the twelve month period »; paragraph 4, limited to words « , in case of renewal, » and words « only when the overall term exceeds twelve months »; Article 21, paragraph 01, limited to the words « freely in the first twelve months and, subsequently »? « .

The situation of fixed -term contracts in Italy

But what is the situation of fixed -term contracts in Italy? The first element to be emphasized by analyzing the Istat data is that in 2024 there was a significant increase in employees with permanent contracts: 16 million (+3.3% compared to the previous year), while term employees drop to 2.8 million (-6.8%, 203 thousand units less). In terms of stock Permanent workers represent about 85% of the total employees, while those under -term 14.7%. The referendum would therefore impact on this band of workers.

« These are percentages – explains Maurizio Del Conte, professor of Labor Law at the Bocconi University of Milan – who place us in line with the European average. The permanent quota in Italy has grown in relation to the need for companies to attract workers in times of great uncertainty. Think only of the pandemic but also of the demographic decline and the future scarcity of workforce ». Lacking the lack of high salaries, the lever of attractiveness has therefore moved to contractual stability reducing the use of short -term contracts, whose abuse was reported by the unions since the 2000s.

The drop in term work is certainly positive but the steps to be taken on the quality work front are many according to the professor. « THEThe real problem of the Italian labor market – he says – are the salaries, which albeit linked to a stable contract remain low. This is also why we lose thousands of young people every year who go to live in Germany or Holland. The tightening on the reason can be good even if it comes with some delay. We must now intervene on the new precariousness, which has moved to other forms of work: I think of the boom in VAT matches or informal work ».