Last Updated on March 31, 2026
On 23 March 2026, Law no. 34 of 11 March, related to small and medium-sized enterprises, also known as the Annual SME Law (Legge annuale PMI), was published. This introduces some employment-related measures aimed at encouraging generational change within small and medium-sized companies, while also clarifying safety obligations, with a particular focus on remote working.
Generational turnover and incentives for part-time employment contracts
The law introduces a pilot measure for 2026 and 2027 aimed at promoting generational turnover in smaller companies through the implementation of part-time work for employees nearing pensionable age.
Under this provision, private sector employees who have contributions dating back to before 1996 and who have a full-time, open-ended employment contract with a company employing up to 50 employees and who will be eligible for old-age or early retirement by 1st January 2028, can now agree to have their contract converted into part-time.
Employees can have their normal working hours reduced from 25% to 50%, also through elastic or flexible clauses that distribute the hours over a week or a month.
Until 31 December 2027 or the date of retirement, if earlier, employees choosing to reduce their working hours in this way will be fully exempt from paying their share of social security contributions, calculated on the remuneration actually received (up to a maximum of 3,000 euros per year). Additionally, they will be eligible for a contribution integration up to the amount of remuneration not received as a result of the reduction in their hours. Imputed social security contributions will expressly be provided for during the same period, based on the remuneration corresponding to the work not performed.
This benefit is subject to one essential condition: for each employee who reduces their working hours, the employer must simultaneously hire, with a full-time, open-ended employment contract, a person aged 34 or younger, thus promoting the entry of younger generations into the labour market. For these hires, the company can also benefit from existing incentives provided by current legislation.
The measure is subject to headcount and financial limits and it is applicable to a maximum of 1,000 employees, with management and monitoring handled by INPS.
Remote working
Amendment of Legislative Decree no. 81/2008 (Consolidated Law on Occupational Safety) aims to clarify the scope of the employer’s obligations when work is carried out in places not directly under the employer’s control.
Applicable to all companies, not just SMEs, this new provision aligns with the existing framework laid out in art. 22 of Law no. 81/2017, confirming that, for remote-working activities, employers fulfill their obligations regarding health and safety by providing an annual written information sheet to employees and workers’ safety representative. This sheet outlines both general and specific risks linked to the carrying out of remote working activities.
The regulation also specifies that, in work environments not directly manageable by the employer, compliance concerns all safety obligations compatible with remote working activities, with particular reference to the risks associated with the use of video terminals.
This is without prejudice to the employee’s obligation to cooperate in the implementation of the company’s prevention measures.
Failure to comply with this information provision is now expressly sanctioned pursuant to the Law on Occupational Safety.
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