Government, regions and social partners agree to relaunch apprenticeships

On 27 October 2010, Italy’s central, regional and provincial governments, as well as the social partners, signed an agreement to relaunch the apprenticeship contract. Through this agreement, the signatories aim to make apprenticeships the most important way in which young people enter the labour market. It is hoped that the new-style apprenticeships will help reduce the worrying unemployment rate among young people in Italy, which is one of the highest in Europe.

Young people in the labour market

In the Italian labour market, unemployment levels for the young are among the highest in the EU. In December 2010, 29% of people between 15 and 24 were unemployed. This figure is three times higher than average unemployment level in the EU for the same period (8.6%).

The general increase in unemployment has hit young people particularly hard. Italy’s national statistics service, Istat, reported in December 2010 that while general unemployment levels rose by 0.2% from 2009 to 2010, the figure for young people was 12 times higher at 2.4%.

At the territorial level, the unemployment level for young people is highest in southern Italy, where it reaches 35.2% (36% for women) and where there was an increase of 2.8% in 2010 compared with 2009.

Access to the labour market for the young takes place predominantly through flexible contracts. According to Istat, 43% of people under 25 are on a non-standard contract ([fixed-term work](/search/node/areas OR industrialrelations OR dictionary OR definitions OR fixedtermwork?oldIndex) or collaboration contracts). Internships are also commonly awarded to young people, but when they finish there is seldom a job opening for the intern. In fact, Italy’s Institute for the Development of Vocational Training (Isfol) reported that of the approximately 400,000 internships that are activated each year in Italy, only 21.1% lead to the offer of an employment contract.

Apprenticeships are supposed to promote the gradual entry of young people into the labour market. However, the adoption of this form of contract, which is applicable to people between 15 and 29, declined considerably in 2009. The number of apprenticeships fell by about 12%, from 645,986 in 2008 to 567,842 in 2009. Furthermore, this type of contract is not always accompanied by adequate forms of training: fewer than 20% of apprentices receive some form of professional instruction (even though this is clearly stipulated in the agreement itself). According to the actors that undersigned the agreement, the potential of apprenticeships has yet to be adequately developed, partly because other solutions such as internships or occasional collaboration contracts are often adopted.

Content of the agreement

The 27 October agreement (in Italian, 2.3Mb PDF) was signed by more than 30 representative organisations, the central government, provinces and regions. The intention of the agreement is to better clarify the legal and institutional aspects of apprenticeships. The aim is to relaunch this instrument so that it guarantees professional training courses for all apprentices, encouraging training in enterprises and greater involvement from the social actors and bilateral bodies.

The signatories have set up a tripartite negotiating table in order to define the guidelines for the reform of apprenticeships. The negotiators will define an adequate system of professional training in order to better exploit potential and prevent the distorted use of this form of training and employment system.

Reactions of the social partners

Emma Marcegaglia, President of the General Confederation of Italian Industry (Confindustria) has expressed her satisfaction with the agreement, saying she sees apprenticeships as an important instrument in the hiring and training of young people in enterprises.

Fulvio Fammoni, Confederal Secretary of the General Confederation of Italian Workers (CGIL) praised the fact some drawbacks of the present apprenticeship system, such as the lack of training, have been highlighted, as well as the inappropriate use of other instruments such as internships and atypical contracts.

According to Giorgio Santini, Confederal Secretary of the Italian Confederation of Workers’ Unions (CISL), the agreement puts an end to a difficult situation between the state and the regions concerning the use of apprenticeships. He expressed the hope that in future apprenticeships can be used more effectively, especially in times of serious unemployment.

For Guglielmo Loy, Confederal Secretary of the Union of Italian Workers (UIL), the agreement achieves the objective of re-establishing guarantees for young people and enterprises, relaunching a type of contract that has been used less and less in recent years.

Sofia Sanz, Cesos