Law Decree no. 62 of 30 April 2026 (published in Official Gazette no. 99 of 30 April 2026) entered into force on 1 May 2026, introducing urgent provisions on fair wages, employment incentives and measures against so-called digital gangmastering. The main provisions are summarised below.
THE FAIR WAGE
The decree introduces the concept of the fair wage, defined as the overall economic treatment set out in national collective agreements (CCNLs) entered into by the employers’ and workers’ organisations that are comparatively more representative at national level (art. 7). The applicable CCNL is identified by reference to the sector and production category, the principal activity carried out, and the size and legal nature of the employer.
The overall economic treatment provided for in CCNLs signed by organisations that are not comparatively more representative may not fall below that set by the leading CCNL for the same sector. In sectors with no collective bargaining coverage, the overall economic treatment applied may not fall below that of the leading CCNL most closely connected to the business actually carried on. This mechanism is designed to combat the phenomenon of so-called «pirate» collective agreements.
Access to all the contributory benefits provided for in the decree is conditional on the individual economic treatment paid to the worker being no lower than the overall economic treatment thus determined (art. 7(5)).
From the date on which the decree is converted into law, job vacancies published on the SIISL platform must indicate the CCNL applied, its unique alphanumeric code, and the remuneration linked to the job grade and contractual level.
PAY TRANSPARENCY AND MONITORING
Article 11 introduces the obligation to include the unique alphanumeric CCNL code in both the individual employment contract and the pay slip. The code, already present in mandatory communications and social security data flows, will be used jointly by the Ministry of Labour, the National Labour Inspectorate (INL), INPS and CNEL to monitor actual application of collective agreements, identify pay discrepancies and plan inspection activity.
Article 9 amends Law no. 936/1986, tasking CNEL with preparing an annual National Pay Report to be transmitted to Parliament, and with establishing an administrative archive of company-level and territorial collective agreements within thirty days of the decree’s conversion into law.
RENEWAL OF NATIONAL COLLECTIVE AGREEMENTS
Article 10 introduces measures to address the phenomenon of gaps between the expiry and renewal of national collective agreements, i.e. the period between the natural expiry of a collective agreement and the signing of its renewal. The parties are required to agree, on renewal, that pay increases take effect from the natural expiry date of the previous agreement. If no renewal is reached within twelve months of expiry, wages are automatically increased by 30% of the HICP variation as a provisional advance. The contractual assistance contribution may not be collected more than twelve months after the natural expiry of the agreement.
EMPLOYMENT INCENTIVES
Chapter I of the decree provides for four 100% social contribution exemptions (excluding INAIL premiums), all conditional on compliance with the fair wage under art. 7.
Women 2026 bonus (art. 1). Exemption for up to 24 months (12 months for certain categories) for permanent hiring of women who have been unemployed for at least 24 months (or 12 months if falling within the disadvantaged categories of EU Regulation no. 651/2014). Cap: €650 per month (€800 for women resident in the Southern Special Economic Zone — ZES Unica regions eligible for EU structural funds). Budget: €26.5 million for 2026.
Youth 2026 bonus (art. 2). Exemption for up to 24 months for permanent hiring of non-managerial workers under 35 who have been unemployed for at least 24 months (or 12 months if belonging to specific disadvantaged categories). Cap: €500 per month (€650 for hires in the ZES Unica regions, including Marche and Umbria). Budget: €109.7 million for 2026.
ZES 2026 bonus (art. 3). Exemption for up to 24 months, available to private employers with no more than ten employees that hire workers aged over 35 who have been unemployed for at least 24 months, in the ZES Unica regions. Cap: €650 per month. Budget: €26 million for 2026.
Stabilisation incentive (art. 4). Exemption for up to 24 months for conversion to permanent employment of fixed-term contracts of no more than 12 months’ total duration, involving non-managerial workers under 35 who have never held a permanent contract. Conversions must take place between 1 August and 31 December 2026, for fixed-term contracts entered into by 30 April 2026. Effectiveness is subject to European Commission authorisation under art. 108(3) TFEU. Cap: €500 per month.
Companies holding the certifications referred to in art. 8(1)(e) of Legislative Decree no. 184/2025 are also entitled to a contribution exemption of up to one per cent, capped at €50,000 per year per company (art. 6), from the date of the decree’s conversion into law.
PLATFORM WORK AND DIGITAL GANGMASTERING
Article 12 reaffirms, with specific reference to work intermediated by digital platforms, that the classification of an employment relationship is based on the actual conditions in which the work is performed, regardless of how the parties have formally characterised it.
In the classification process, account must be taken, among other things, of the exercise of powers of organisation, direction, control, performance evaluation, access restriction and unilateral determination of remuneration, including through algorithmic systems.
In this classification process, the employment relationship may be presumed to be one of subordinate employment where indicators of control or hetero-direction emerge, including through algorithmic management. The platform seeking to resist reclassification of the relationship must therefore demonstrate the absence of such indicators.
Platforms must record and retain for at least five years data on logins, assignments, refusals, working times and fees (art. 13), and must provide workers with information on the algorithmic systems used for task assignment, pay determination and modification, performance evaluation and access suspension. Workers have the right to obtain an intelligible explanation of any automated decision affecting their working conditions and to request human review of such decisions (art. 14).
Specific protections for delivery riders (art. 15): platform access only via certified authentication (SPID, CIE, CNS or multi-factor authentication); prohibition on credential sharing, sanctioned with an administrative fine of €800–1,200; obligation to deliver a monthly payroll register from 1 July 2026 stating the number of deliveries and total amount paid; obligation to complete a basic training course on the SIISL platform within thirty days of first engagement.
TREASURY FUND
Contributions to the INPS Treasury Fund for the period January–June 2026, paid by 16 July 2026, are deemed timely in all respects, with no civil penalties, interest or additional charges (art. 16).
The opinions and information contained in this Newsletter are for general informational purposes only and cannot be considered sufficient to adopt operational decisions or to undertake commitments of any kind, nor do they constitute the expression of professional legal advice. This Newsletter is the property of Studio Legale Carlo Pisani e Associati.
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