WORKERS' PARTICIPATION IN COMPANY MANAGEMENT: NEW LAW APPROVED
On 14 May 2025 the Senate of the Italian Republic, following the favorable vote of the Italian Chamber of Deputies, definitively approved the text of the draft law (DDL) No. 1407 concerning provisions for worker participation in the management, capital and profits of enterprises, that originated from a popular initiative proposal promoted by the CGIL (Italian General Confederation of Labor), which will enter into force as law once it is published in the Official Gazette of the Italian Republic.
In application of Article 46 of the Italian Constitution on the right of workers to collaborate - in the manner and within the limits established by law - in the management of companies, as well as in compliance with the principles and rules of the European Union and international standards on the matter at stake, the text of the new law includes:
- the regulation of four types of employee participation in the company, namely managerial, economic-financial, organizational and consultative, together with the identification of the related promotion and incentive methods;
- the introduction of rules aimed at broadening and consolidating processes of economic democracy and business sustainability, with reference to the training of workers' representatives financed through bilateral bodies and joint interprofessional funds, and the establishment of the “Permanent National Commission for Workers’ Participation” (composed of representatives of the CNEL - National Economic and Labor Council, the Ministry of Labor and experts appointed by trade union organizations representing both workers and employers);
- the application of its rules also to cooperative societies insofar as they are compatible;
- the provision that the financial coverage of the burdens arising from the law at stake is to be done through dedicated resources from the Budget Law 2025.
This is with the aim of strengthening the collaboration between employers and employees, preserving and increasing employment levels and enhancing the economic and social value of work.
