Jobs Act, more conflict now but less in the future. And then a change of mentality for companies and trade unions. Everyone will be called to deal with a different approach especially in the drafting and negotiation of employment contracts. We talked about it with Giuseppe Cucurachi, labor lawyer of the Nunziante Magrone studio who has been following this sector for years.
Lawyer, with the Jobs Act and the introduction of the contract with increasing protections, will the reasons for conflict between companies and employees increase or decrease? The Italians are already quarrelsome enough…
“In the near term, we expect an overconfidence by employers in the flexibility introduced by the Jobs Act could lead to more labor litigation. In the medium to long term, however, the number and duration of disputes could also be significantly reduced compared to today".
What is the time frame of the short term? One, two years?
“ It's not easy to say, we can think about the next 2-3 years. Today we only have some of the implementing decrees of the Jobs Act. Furthermore, some rules are applicable to all workers: for example those on remote controls or on the variation of duties; but a relevant part of the Jobs Act, contracts with increasing protections, applies only to new hires. Thus a significant part of the market will continue to bear the same procedures and costs for the redundancies covered by Article 18. The double track is undoubtedly a further complication. Managing workers with different rules within the same company can generate confusion, therefore errors, and therefore potential litigation”.
What kind of errors?
“The new law can lead to an excess of trust in the employer or in any case careless attitudes in layoffs or job changes. The picture is still not clear on the possibility of downgrading or changing an employee's duties. The decree introduces a certain interpretative flexibility and an overly broad interpretation can generate conflicts. However, it is also out-of-court consultancy, which currently occupies 70% of our work, that could change. At least in part."
In which direction?
“The request for consultancy in the drafting and negotiation of the employment contract could be more frequent. And attention could return to institutions that have often gone into the background in recent years, such as internal mobility or working hours."
The reform can push towards greater individual bargaining?
“We expect the individual employment contract to be central again. As with managers, it will make sense for regular employees to negotiate better terms before signing on. The experience of other countries, such as Spain, where contracts with increasing protections have already been applied for some time, goes in this direction. I am thinking, for example, of the agreements on conventional length of service: when, in the event of dismissal, a compensation of two months' salary is envisaged for each year of company seniority, with a minimum of 4 months' salary, move the hands backwards and recognizing the worker more seniority can make the difference. Especially in the transition phase, while waiting for the regulatory framework to be completed and clarified, I believe it is probable that there are entrepreneurs willing to give something more to the new hire".
Returning to wages, will collective bargaining change?
“The new contract with increasing protections makes exit more flexible. It is possible that there is also greater flexibility in negotiating wages: it is a further aspect left open by the reform. For now I would leave a question mark but it could actually go in the direction of greater bargaining at the company level".
Is the role of the union changing?
“Certainly, the union will have to change both in relations with companies and internally. There are many reasons why the corporate level once again plays a central role in the negotiation. If the reform works, we would have fewer small companies and since it is in the larger companies that the unions attract more members, the union will continue to play a role but on a modified basis. It could return to concentrate its efforts on negotiating working conditions as well as, in the event of reorganizations or collective dismissals, aim to obtain protections superior to those of the law. It will also have to reform internally, however, by strengthening the territorial articulation and trying to attract the many workers, from VAT numbers to temporary workers, who are not unionized today".
