Self-Employment Jobs Act: main developments

With the final approval of the so called Self-employment Jobs Act – currently pending publication in the Official Gazette – a reform of the Italian laws has been introduced with the goal of providing financial-social protection to self-employed individuals that do not carry out their activity through a business. From a financial protection standpoint, the provision deems as illicit, with the consequent right of the self-employed individual to receive reimbursement for damages, the clauses (i) that assign to the client the right to withdraw from the agreement without adequate prior notice as well as to modify unilaterally the terms thereby specified and (ii) for which the parties agree to payment terms exceeding 60 days. Similarly, the behaviour of a client who refuses to sign a written agreement is deemed illicit. Also in such case, the self-employed worker shall have the right to receive reimbursement for damages. In addition, also in force are the application of the discipline governing the abuse of economic dependence and the recognition of the self-employed worker’s rights related to the financial exploitation of original creations and inventions developed while performing the contract, except where the creative activity is the actual scope of the agreement and is compensated accordingly. These are only a few of the main developments introduced by the Self-employment Jobs Act, but they seem already sufficient to lead clients to carefully assess the possibility of entering into adequate agreements for the already existing relationships, as well as for any future ones, with self-employed workers.