Urgent measures – conversion of the Fiscal Decree into law – Labor
- Studio Piceci
- December 23, 2021
- Reading time: 6 min
Subject: Urgent measures concerning employment and unavoidable needs, conversion of the Fiscal-Employment Decree into law
The Fiscal-Labor Decree No. 146 of October 21, 2021, was converted, with amendments, into Law No. 215 of December 17, 2021, published in Gazzetta on December 20, 2021.
Below are the most interesting developments in the field of employment.
One-time reimbursement of sick pay paid in full by the employer
Within the spending limit of €188.30 million for the year 2021, private sector employers with social security obligations to INPS (National Social Security Institute), excluding domestic employers, are entitled to a lump-sum reimbursement for costs incurred in relation to their employees who are not entitled to economic sickness insurance from INPS (e.g., industrial sector employees). For illnesses occurring between January 31, 2020, and December 31, 2021, employers will submit an online application to the social security institution to obtain reimbursement from INPS in the amount of €600.00 per worker. The application must be accompanied by a statement certifying the periods of economic protection for illness. We are awaiting instructions from the Institute on the procedures and deadlines for submitting applications. The reimbursement is granted to the employer on a one-off basis for each individual worker and is only provided in cases where the work cannot be carried out remotely during the event. INPS will verify the accuracy of the declarations submitted.
Parental leave
Employees who are parents of children under the age of 14 living with them may, alternatively to the other parent, refrain from work for a period corresponding in whole or in part to the duration of the suspension of their child's in-person teaching or educational activities, the duration of their child's SARS-CoV-2 infection, and the duration of their child's quarantine ordered by the competent local health authority following contact anywhere.
The benefit is granted, regardless of the age of the child, to parents of children with disabilities in a situation of serious disability ascertained pursuant to Article 3, paragraph 3, of Law No. 104/1992, in cases where the child has contracted SARS-CoV-2 infection, or for the duration of the child's quarantine, or in cases where face-to-face teaching or educational activities have been suspended, or where the child attends day care centers that have been ordered to close.
Parental leave can be taken on a daily or hourly basis; an allowance equal to 50% of the salary is recognized in lieu of remuneration, calculated in accordance with the provisions of the Consolidated Law on Maternity and Paternity (Decree 151/2001), with the exception of paragraph 2 of Article 23 of the aforementioned Consolidated Law. The relevant periods are covered by imputed contributions. In a circular dated December 21, 2021, INPS announced that it is possible to submit the relevant applications electronically. For periods of parental leave taken by parents from the start of the 2021/2022 school year until the Decree comes into force (October 21, 2021), they may be converted to this leave upon request (if they were requested because the child was ill due to SARS-CoV-2 infection, or because of the child's quarantine or suspension of in-person education, or because of the closure of daycare centers).
There is a spending limit, and INPS monitors this, communicating the results to the Ministry of Labor and Social Policies and the Ministry of Economy and Finance.
Additional provisions regarding wage supplementation
The law converting the Fiscal-Labor Decree confirmed the additional thirteen weeks of Ordinary Allowance and Exceptional Wage Supplementation for the period from October 1, 2021, to December 31, 2021, without any additional contribution. Applications may be submitted by private sector employers who suspend or reduce work activities due to events related to the Covid-19 epidemiological emergency, and may concern workers employed as of October 21, 2021.
These benefits are granted up to a spending limit of €657.9 million for the year 2021, divided between the two measures mentioned above. INPS will monitor the situation and, if it appears that the spending limit has been reached, even prospectively, it will not consider any further applications.
Employers referred to in Article 50-bis, paragraph 2, of Decree Law No. 73 of May 25, 2021 (employers in the textile, clothing, leather goods, and similar industries, identified according to the ATECO 2007 classification of economic activities with codes 13, 14, and 15) , who suspend or reduce work activities due to events related to the Covid-19 epidemiological emergency, may apply for ordinary wage supplementation (CIGO) for 9 weeks from October 1, 2021, to December 31, 2021. These benefits are also granted only within the spending limit of €140.5 million for the year 2021. INPS will monitor the situation and, if it anticipates that the spending limit will be exceeded, INPS will not consider any further applications.