Prepared by Carlo Marinelli e Marzio Scaglioni
On October 21, 2021 has been published in the Italian Official Gazette the so-called “Decreto Fiscale” (“Urgent measures on economic and fiscal matters, for the protection of employment and for non-deferrable exigencies”), which provides for the following labor-related updates:
Extension of the redundancy fund
In line with the past, the decree allows employers who do not benefit from the ordinary redundancy fund (“CIGO”) and suspend or reduce their work activities due to events connected with the “Covid-19″ emergency to apply for ordinary allowances and CIG “in deroga” for a maximum duration of no. 13 weeks in the period between October 1, 2021 and December 31, 2021. The wage supplement will be granted only to employers who have already been fully authorized the period of no. 28 weeks provided by the so called “Decreto Sostegni” (Law Decree no. 41/2021).
As concerns employers in the textile sector (ATECO codes no. 13, 14 and 15), further no. 9 weeks of ordinary redundancy fund (“CIGO”) have been provided for the period between October 1, 2021 and December 31, 2021, due to events connected with the epidemiological emergency once the previous authorized redundancy fund period has expired.
The request for the redundancy fund must be submitted to INPS (the Italian social security authority), under penalty of forfeiture, by the end of the month following the start of the period of suspension or reduction of work activity.
As previously, the decree confirms the possibility of direct payment by INPS or rather the possibility for the employer to anticipate the redundancy payment and confirms the exemption from the payment of the additional contribution by companies.
The ban of collective and individual dismissal for objective reason, as per Art. 3, Law no. 604/66, is also confirmed, without prejudice of the ordinary exemptions: (i) definitive shutdown of business activities; (ii) winding-up of the company without the continuation, even partial, of business activities, unless the business or a branch thereof is transferred; (iii) mutual termination of the employment relationship within a company collective agreement, entered into by the most representative trade unions at national level; (iv) bankruptcy when the provisional running of the company is not envisaged or its termination is ordered.
Refinancing of the social security protections provided in the hypothesis of “quarantine”
Furthermore, Article 8 provides for the refinancing, within the maximum expenditure limit of 976.7 million euros for the year 2021, by the State of the measures aimed at equating the quarantine periods with the periods of illness.
Also relevant is the addition of paragraph 7-bis to the aforementioned article which provides, only for the period from 1 January 2021 until 31 December 2021, the right to a flat-rate reimbursement for the costs incurred relating to their employees who are not entitled to economic sickness insurance with INPS, reserved only for private sector employers with social security obligation at the INPS management, excluding domestic employers.
The reimbursement is granted to the employer on a one-off basis for each individual worker and is provided only in cases where the work performance, during the event, cannot be carried out in an agile way.
The reimbursement is paid by INPS, for an amount equal to 600 euros for each worker, upon presentation by the employer of a specific electronic application accompanied by a declaration certifying the periods referring to the protections indicated to be transmitted in the manner and within the deadlines that will be indicated by INPS.
The benefit is recognized within the maximum total expenditure limit of € 188.3 million for the year 2021, giving priority to chronologically prior events. Therefore, once the spending limit has been reached, no further refunds will be made.
New Covid-related Parental Leaves
Finally, Article 9 of the Decree contains the provision of new COVID Parental Leave in the case of cohabiting children under the age of fourteen for a period corresponding, in whole or in part, to the duration:
- The suspension of teaching or educational activities in the presence of the child;
- The son’s SARS-COVID-2 infection;
- The child’s quarantine ordered by the competent health authorities.
The benefit is also recognized to parents of children with disabilities in a situation of ascertained seriousness (Law 104/92), regardless of the age of the child, enrolled in schools of all levels and levels for which the suspension of the activity has been ordered didactics in presence or hosted in day care centers for which closure has been ordered.
Leave is available on a daily or hourly basis. For periods of abstention enjoyed, an indemnity equal to 50% of the salary itself, covered by a notional contribution, is recognized in place of the salary.
Any periods of ordinary Parental Leave taken by parents, starting from the beginning of the school year 2021-2022 until 22 October 2021, for the above reasons, can be converted on request into the extraordinary CODIV-19 leave, with the right to allowance provided and are neither calculated nor compensated by way of Parental Leave.
In the case of children aged between 14 and 16, one of the parents, alternatively to the other, has the right to abstain, in the same cases, from work without payment of remuneration or indemnity or recognition of notional contribution, with prohibition of dismissal and right to keep the job.
These benefits are recognized within the spending limit of 29.3 million euros for the year 2021. The operating procedures for accessing them are established by INPS. Upon reaching the spending limit, INPS will not consider further questions. The period of application of the measures indicated ends on 31 December 2021.
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PwC TLS Avvocati e Commercialisti
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PwC TLS Avvocati e Commercialisti
Director