On February 20, 2015, Italy approved significant but
controversial reforms to Article 18 of Italy's Workers'
Statute of 1970 in an attempt to combat soaring unemployment,
currently 42% among workers under the age of 29 and 12.8% overall,
and facilitate growth in an otherwise stagnant economy. The
reforms, referred to as the "Jobs Act" ("Jobs
Act" or "reforms") were implemented by several
Legislative Decrees and based upon the guidelines provided by Law
no. 183 in December of 2014. The Jobs Act seeks to improve the
economy by establishing a more flexible labor market by making
dismissals less costly and burdensome to employers, by enticing
employers to hire new employees and by providing more employment
opportunities and benefits to unemployed workers. The reforms do
not apply to public sector employees, religious institutions,
non-entrepreneurial entities or employees hired before January 1,
2015. The significant reforms are as follows:
