The alliance for the minimum salary takes its first official step. She was filed yesterday, Tuesday, July 4, in the House 7-point bill on the minimum wage signed by all the opposition parties – M5s, Pd, Alleanza Verdi-Sinistra, Più Europa and Azione – except from Italia viva. The government and the majority have so far shown themselves hostile to the proposal: "I am not convinced that the minimum wage can be reached by law", the Minister of Labor Marina Calderone cut short. The text, 8 articles, provides the threshold at 9 euros per hour and the application to all types of work (also to collaborations), in addition to the use as a reference of the minimum wage established by the contracts, thus strengthening trade union action.
If the proposal is approved, i minimal economic treatment (Tem) could not be less than 9 euros gross per hour. Therefore the proposal concerns the Term and not the overall economic benefits (Tec), which also include seniority increments, additional monthly payments such as the thirteenth and fourteenth month and the fixed and continuous contractual indemnities. Also because otherwise the proposal would be of use to a few and, on the contrary, it would weaken collective bargaining. The 9 euro threshold should be understood as a "lifesaver" in cases where the national collective agreement (Ccnl) should provide for a lower salary. If it were more advantageous for the worker, the national contract would continue to apply. But let's see in detail what the proposal on the minimum wage of the opposition says.
Minimum wage in Italy: the 7 points of the bill
While waiting for the proposal to go through its process in the Chamber, let's see what the 7 points are:
1) the worker in each sector is recognized as one not less salary to that foreseen by collective agreements entered into by the comparatively most representative employers' and trade union organisations, with the exception of more favorable treatments;
2) as a further guarantee of the recognition of one fair pay, a mandatory minimum threshold of 9 euros per hour is nevertheless introduced. A figure which, in the order of ideas of the opposition, should protect the most fragile and poorest sectors, in which bargaining power is weaker than trade union organisations;
3) the extension of just remuneration also to employment relationships parasubordination is at work autonomous;
4) also in accordance with the provisions of the minimum wage directive, a Commission made up of representatives of the social partners and institutions who will have the task of periodically updating the minimum hourly salary;
5) the effectiveness of the workers' right to receive a salary is regulated and therefore guaranteed decent economic treatment;
6) is recognized by law theultra-activity of canceled or expired employment contracts;
7) a period of time is recognized for adapting the contracts to the new discipline, and a benefit economic in support of employers for whom this adjustment is more "onerous".
Minimum wage: why is Italia Viva against?
“On the merits of the minimum wage – declares a note from Renzi's party – Italia Viva had presented a different text to the elections from the one proposed by Campo Largo and therefore, in line with the electoral mandate, Italia Viva will propose amendments to the text , voting in favor of the points on which it agrees. Italia Viva will behave in the same way on the next bills on justice, infrastructure and health care. We vote for the laws that convince us but we remain in opposition to Meloni and distant from the positions on the work of Fratoianni, Conte and Schlein".
The proposal splits the unions
Among the trade unions Maurizio Landini, general secretary of the CGIL and Paolo Bombardieri of Uil they said they were in favour. On the other hand, the opinion of Luigi Sbarra, leader of the Cisl, is different, convinced that "the indication of a threshold, of a minimum compensation by law exposes one to various risks such as the escape from the application of contracts in many companies, a crushing wage dynamics of average wages and above all an expansion of undeclared and undeclared work". The president of Confindustria, Carlo Bonomi, who claimed the application by industrialists of contracts decidedly higher than the figure indicated in the Pdl: “We are talking about 9 euros gross, it is not an issue that concerns Confindustria. Our contracts are above that figure”.
The minimum wage in the rest of Europe
La EU directive it does not require changing the existing national systems on the minimum wage to be paid to workers, but in respect of the differences in labor market models between the various member countries, it establishes a procedural framework to promote "adequate and fair" minimum wages.
Among the member states of the European Union, in addition to Italy too Austria, Denmark, Finland e Sweden they do not have a minimum wage, preferring to resort to collective bargaining between the executive and the social partners. Instead, of the 22 EU countries where there is a minimum wage, with very different values and applications, the Bulgaria it is the one with the lowest salary ceiling equal to 398,80 euros per month, approximately 2,37 euros per hour. While the upper limit is in Luxembourg equal to 2.387,40 euros per month, or 13,37 euros per hour. Only 7 other countries have a minimum wage above €1.000: Germany (2,080.00 euros equal to 12 euros per hour), France (1709,28 euros equal to 11,27 euros per hour), Spain (1.260 euros equal to 7,82 euros per hour), Ireland (1909.70 euros per month equal to 11,30 euros per hour), Belgium (1,954.99 euros equal to 11,87 euros per hour), Netherlands (1934.40 euros per month or 11,16 euros per hour) e Slovenia (1.203,36 euros approximately 6,92 euros per hour).
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