In Italy, at present, the main type of employment relationship is still the employee/employer relationship and the purpose of the Italy’s Jobs Act is, in fact, to render the open-term employment contract the normal form of employment, replacing the “non-genuineness” contractual forms widespread before this reform (i.e. VAT number consultants contracts and the project work contracts).
Self-employed relationships are widespread and commonly used, but sometimes they are viewed by the Courts with suspicion, as if behind them lurks a subordinate employment relationship in disguise.
Case law on this issue, however, is fairly consistent and uniform, and the principles applied in order to establish the real nature of a relationship are clear.
Therefore, the principal must pay particular attention to the actual management of the self-employed relationships it has entered into.
In fact, the “genuineness” of the relationship prevents the independent contractor from obtaining, after the termination of the service, a court order to come back to work in the company, this time as an employee.
LABLAW – Studio Legale
Luca Failla, Partner
l.failla@lablaw.com
T: +39 02 30 31 11
www.lablaw.com