Rielaborazione, con l’aggiunta delle note, delle Relazione tenuta a Bologna al Convegno Le politiche del lavoro del Governo Renzi, Seminari di Bertinoro – Dialoghi di Diritto del Lavoro tra cielo e mare – X edizione, 23 – 24 ottobre 2014.

The essay analyzes the Enabling Act recently approved by the Parliament, which aims to delegate the Cabinet to introduce a great reform of the Italian Labour Law. After examining the political reasons for the reform (to make the Italian labour market more flexible and reduce the rights of the workers in exchange for an increasing flexibility in the EU economic parameters, such as public debt, balance deficit etc.), the essay maintains that the Act does not breach the norm of the Constitution ruling the Enabling Legislation. Then the article points out the possible competition between the recent legislation on fixed term contract and the new open ended contract with growing labour protection. In the second part, the essay stresses some of the most important reforms the delegated legislation must introduce. First of all, the reduction in the number of Labour contracts, which should abrogate some of the most precarious ones, and the open ended contract with growing labour protection, which will allow employers to easily dismiss workers, amending article 18 of the Italian Workers’ Statute. Then the possible reforms of the tasks in the Labour contract and the legislation on the controlling at a distance of the workers are analyzed, underlining that these innovations could reduce some fundamental rights of the workers, even though at the moment it is impossible to foresee the extent of this potential reduction. Finally the articles highlights the part of the Enabling Act which will allow the Cabinet to introduce a minimum wage legislation, stressing that this innovation could have positive effects unless it affects the general application of the minimum wage currently guaranteed by the collective agreements. In conclusion, the essay maintains that the reform wants to make the Labour contract more flexible to reach some very arguable economic targets (such as the increase in the level of employment) without considering the negative effects on some fundamental rights of the workers, in a context in which the reduction in protection in the Labour contract is not compensated by an enhancement in welfare support and unemployment benefit.