Continuance in effect: National Collective Labour Agreement effective until conclusion of a new one (Newsletter Norme & Tributi n. 156 Camera di Commercio Italo-Germanica – Vittorio De Luca, Elena Cannone)

By Order no. 40409/2021 dated 28 October 2021, lodged on 16 December 2021, the Court of Cassation reconfirmed the general principle that as collective agreements governed by ordinary law are an expression of the negotiating autonomy of the parties to the agreement, they must be considered valid and effective only within the time period agreed by said parties. The Court therefore holds that the provision that the agreement shall be valid until a new one has been concluded must be considered as the period of validity as it is a continuance in effect clause. In the case in point, the CCNL for private healthcare workers (2002-2005) provided that it would be effective “until conclusion of the new CCNL”. The Court believes that although this expression does not contain a precise chronological framework, it states the contracting parties’ intention to “be bound by the content of the agreement signed until a new one has been negotiated and signed”. The Court also clarifies that if a subsequent regulatory agreement is concluded, it shall be considered valid and effective for the signatory parties only and not for the trade unions that signed the previous agreement but not the amending agreement.