Accessory work and social support provisions: the Jobs Act’s corrective decree was finally approved by the Council of Ministers

The Council of Ministers, in its meeting of 23 September 2016 has approved in its final form, a legislative decree containing, among others, provisions integrating and correcting Legislative Decree No. 81/2015 and Legislative Decree No. 148/2015. With regard to accessory work, the decree calls for the principal to notify by text message or email to the local office of the National Labour Inspectorate, the worker’s personal details or tax code, as well as the place and duration of the accessory work, at least 60 minutes prior to the start of the work. In addition, the principal shall specify the day and time of start and end of the work. This is a new regulation with the goal of countering, through the traceability of the vouchers, any abuse. In order to ensure the effectiveness of the regulation reported, the decree establishes an administrative fine, ranging from a minimum of 400 Euros to a maximum of 2,400 Euros for each employee for which the notification is not provided.

Additional new regulations have also been applied to social support provisions. The main ones concern: (a) the possibility of transforming job-security agreements (contratti di solidarietà difensivi) that have been in effect for at least twelve months or entered into before 1 January 2016, into job-creation agreements (contratti di solidarietà espansivi) in order to ensure more jobs, as long as this does not lead to a reduction of working hours greater than the agreed reduction; (b) for companies of strategic national interest from an economic standpoint that entered into government agreements by 31 July 2015, the possibility of requesting the extension of the contribution reduction pursuant to art. 6, paragraph 4, Law Decree No. 510/1996 for a term established by a special committee appointed by the Presidency of the Council of Ministers and in any case within the 24-month limit; (c) the possibility of authorizing further action of extraordinary wage subsidies for companies operating in the so called areas of complex crisis already identified. The benefit may be granted for no more than 12 months.