22 December 2025
Editorial
The Newsletter is going on holiday

Dear Madam, Dear Sir,

with this issue, the Newsletter is going on holiday.
We hope that the layout and the content offered throughout the year have met your expectations and proved useful.

On this occasion, we would like to inform you that during the holiday period, from Christmas Eve to Epiphany, the Firm’s Labour Department will operate with reduced hours and limited activities. As usual, we will remain available by email for urgent matters and will of course ensure that all activities subject to deadlines are duly handled.
The Newsletter will resume in January.

Enjoy the reading, and from all of us, our very best wishes to you all for the upcoming holidays!

Vincenzo Fabrizio Giglio

5 November 2025
Executives
Renewal of the CCNL for Tertiary Sector Executives: more welfare, salary increases and incentives for training

On 5 November 2025, the social partners Confcommercio and Manageritalia signed the draft agreement for the renewal of the National Collective Labour Agreement (CCNL) applicable to executives of companies in the tertiary, distribution and services sectors. The agreement, which will be effective from 1 January 2026 to 31 December 2028, confirms the central role of management and strengthens the bilateral welfare and training system, with the aim of supporting business competitiveness and well-being.

From an economic perspective, the contract provides for increases in monthly salary of EUR 320.00 from 1 January 2026, EUR 260.00 from 2027 and EUR 220.00 from 2028, with the minimum contractual salary progressively rising to EUR 5,140.00 once fully implemented. A minimum annual welfare credit of EUR 1,500.00 in favour of executives has also been confirmed, with the possibility of deferring or allocating unused amounts to the Mario Negri Fund.

The agreement also introduces new provisions on supplementary pension schemes, with a gradual increase in contribution rates, and on the “Pastore Accidents” insurance, which from 2026 will provide for an annual premium of EUR 560.00 for each executive. Also noteworthy is the commitment of the parties to promote continuous training through CFMT and to strengthen active outplacement policies, simplifying contribution incentives for the hiring or appointment of new executives, including temporary managers and senior executives within the framework of the “active ageing” programme.

22 November 2025
Industrial relations
Metalworkers: salary increases, new rules on fixed-term contracts and greater protections for workers in the renewal of the CCNL
“CCNL Metalworkers C011”

The draft agreement for the renewal of the National Collective Labour Agreement for metalworkers has been signed, with effect from 22 November 2025 and expiry on 30 June 2028. The previous 2021 contract remained in force until the new agreement was reached. From an economic standpoint, the renewal confirms the previous contractual model, with an inflation safeguard clause and an overall increase of EUR 205.32 at the average C3 level, paid in four instalments. Flexible benefits also increase, from EUR 200 to EUR 250, with payment brought forward to February for the year 2026.

Important changes concern contractual arrangements: fixed-term contracts may last up to 24 months with broader subjective and objective reasons, including the hiring of young people under 35 or workers over 50. From 2027, the use of such reasons will be subject to the stabilisation of 20% of fixed-term contracts that ended during the year. For agency work, the same reasons will apply to employment agencies; from 2026, anyone who has worked for more than 48 months on assignment at the same company will acquire the right to permanent employment.

The contract also introduces measures to reduce working hours for shift workers and improves the management of paid annual leave. In terms of safety and training, mandatory “training breaks” are envisaged in companies with more than 200 employees. Finally, the agreement strengthens gender protections by promoting gender equality certification, the prevention of harassment and a culture of respect in the workplace.

5 December 2025
Remuneration and benefits
Company car and options paid by the employee: no reduction of the fringe benefit
Italian Revenue Agency

A company had granted its employees the free use of company cars for mixed business and private use, allowing them to request the installation of optional extras at their own expense, to be deducted directly from payroll. The company asked whether such amounts, paid by employees to personalise the car, could reduce the taxable fringe benefit for tax and social security purposes.

The Italian Revenue Agency clarified that the value of the benefit arising from the mixed use of a company car is determined on a lump-sum basis according to ACI tables, regardless of the actual costs incurred. Consequently, only amounts withheld from the employee for personal use of the vehicle may reduce the taxable amount, whereas sums paid for optional extras or other goods and services related to the car are irrelevant.

In other words, if the employee personally pays for the installation of accessories not included in the ACI value, these expenses do not affect the calculation of the fringe benefit, which remains fully taxable according to the lump-sum criteria. Amounts relating to optional extras must simply be deducted from net pay, without any impact on the taxable employment income base.

21 July 2025
Confidentiality and Privacy
Secret recordings between colleagues: sanctions apply in the absence of imminent litigation
Supreme Court, Labour Section

The case originated from a non-dismissal disciplinary sanction imposed on an employee for secretly recording a conversation between colleagues on company premises, without consent and without informing those present. The employee justified the conduct by invoking defensive needs, claiming the legitimacy of the recording as a means of pre-constituting evidence. The lower courts deemed the conduct disciplinarily relevant, excluding the applicability of the so-called defensive justification.

The Supreme Court upheld this assessment, clarifying that secret recordings may be considered lawful only when they are strictly necessary, relevant and proportionate to the protection of a right in pending or immediately foreseeable judicial proceedings. According to the Court, a generic intent of self-protection or the mere possibility of future litigation is not sufficient. In the absence of a concrete and timely connection with a specific defensive need, the recording assumes an exploratory character and conflicts with the duties of fairness, loyalty and confidentiality incumbent upon the employee.

The ruling reiterates that the burden of proving the defensive purpose lies with the person making the recording and that, failing such proof, the conduct may lawfully be sanctioned. The balancing between the right of defence and the protection of internal confidentiality must therefore be carried out rigorously, avoiding improper extensions of the defensive justification.

8 July 2025
Occupational health and safety
The National Labour Inspectorate clarifies the use of underground premises: stringent checks on declarations and certifications
INL

The National Labour Inspectorate has provided new operational instructions to its territorial offices regarding inspections on the use of underground or semi-underground premises in workplaces, following the amendments introduced to Article 65 of Legislative Decree no. 81/2008.

The provision, which allows the use of such premises only in the presence of certain hygienic, health and safety conditions, now requires the employer to submit a “Derogation Notification”, accompanied by a technical report and a certification by a qualified professional. The Inspectorate specifies that technical service areas (such as bathrooms, changing rooms or boiler rooms) and premises with a low occupancy factor are excluded from the notification obligation.

The INL establishes that offices must first verify the formal completeness of the documentation, while substantive checks on the truthfulness of declarations will be carried out within the scope of inspection activities. In the event of false declarations or structural deficiencies relating to lighting, ventilation or microclimate, the Inspectorate may proceed with criminal reporting, suspension of activities and reporting to the professional register of the certifying technician.

The aim is to standardise inspections and ensure that underground premises are used under conditions of actual safety, thereby protecting workers’ health and the legality of working environments.

17 July 2025
Dismissal for just cause
Disciplinary dismissal of a teacher: lawful where conduct undermines the respect owed to students
Supreme Court, Labour Section

A secondary school teacher was dismissed for just cause following conduct deemed gravely offensive and inappropriate towards certain students. The disciplinary measure, challenged by the employee, had initially been annulled by the Court of Appeal, which considered the sanction disproportionate to the alleged facts.

The Supreme Court instead confirmed the lawfulness of the dismissal, referring to the need to protect the decorum and educational function inherent in the role of a teacher. According to the Court, the teacher’s behaviour, even if not accompanied by physical abuse, may still constitute a breach of the duties of fairness and respect towards students when it is capable of irreversibly undermining the fiduciary relationship with the administration.

The decision reaffirms that the fiduciary bond takes on a particularly stringent nature for those performing educational roles, in which proper conduct constitutes an integral part of the work performance. Therefore, disciplinary dismissal is lawful when a teacher’s conduct harms students’ dignity and conflicts with the fundamental values of the school system.