THE ITALIAN SUPREME COURT REAFFIRMS THE MINIMUM WAGE
Published on :
01/11/2023
01
November
Nov
11
2023
On October 2023, the Italian Supreme Court issued six sentences[1] clarifying the notion of “constitutional minimum wage” with reference to art. 36 of the Italian Constitution that states: “The worker has the right to remuneration proportionate to the quantity and quality of his work and in any case sufficient to ensure himself and his family a free and dignified existence. The maximum length of the working day is established by law. The worker has the right to weekly rest and paid annual holidays, and cannot renounce them."
In particular, through the mentioned six sentences the Supreme Court affirmed:
- The possibility, for the judge of merit, to disapply the insufficient treatment applied by the national collective labor agreements, even if signed by the most representative unions,
- The need to guarantee adequate salary treatment pursuant to art. 36 of the Italian Constitution, corresponding to a collective agreement in a similar sector or for similar tasks, or determined on the basis of other criteria.
However, it is the worker's responsibility to provide evidence regarding the violation of the criteria of proportionality and sufficiency pursuant to art. 36 Constitution and to prove that the treatment applied by his/her employer is below the constitutional minimums pursuant to art. 36 Constitution.
Subsequently, it will be necessary to identify the "right salary" taking as reference a collective agreement for "similar sector or similar tasks", or other parameters such as economic and statistical indicators and even equity.
Finally, we remind you that the European Union has issued Directive (EU) 2022/2041 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 October 2022 on adequate minimum wages in the European Union, which must be transposed within two years by the Member States.
In Italy, the bill on the minimum wage have been taken up and developed. Currently, the bill is subject to examination by the Labor Commission of the Chamber of Deputies.
[1] Supreme Court, Labour Division 2 October 2023, n. 27711, Supreme Court, Labour Division 2 October 2023, n. 27713, Supreme Court, Labour Division 2 October 2023 n. 27769, Supreme Court, Labour Division 10 October 2023 n. 28320, Supreme Court, Labour Division 10 October 2023 n. 28231, Supreme Court, Labour Division 10 October 2023 n. 28323