Youth employment measures

In Italy, youth employment is incentivized through structural measures and short-term interventions. These include:

• the provision of hiring incentives (in the form of tax benefits) for new young employees under the age of 36;

• support for entrepreneurship (Cf. 3.8 - 3.10);

• active labour market policies;

• programs to strengthen the school-to-work transition, developed through the implementation of the Youth Guarantee program and, currently, through the National Plan for Youth, Women and Work (PN Giovani, Donne e Lavoro) (Cf. 3.4). 
  The main target group consists of young people aged between 15 and 34, including third-country nationals, migrants and beneficiaries of international protection, in particular: NEETs (Not in Education, Employment or Training); young people who have just completed an education or training path and are looking for a job; young people who, although not actively seeking work, are available to work; young people who are currently unavailable due to family responsibilities or health issues. The website of the program includes a section dedicated to Communication, which collects multimedia content disseminated through various channels, including a magazine dedicated to Territorial Cohesion. The Giovani2030 portal also hosts campaigns and initiatives dedicated to supporting young people in their path towards employment.

Flexicurity measures focusing on young people

Decree-Law 48/2023 (Labour Decree), converted into Law 85/2023, introduced significant changes in labour law, particularly by simplifying the use of fixed-term contracts and introducing flexibility measures: 

• The Inclusion Allowance (ADI) is a measure of economic support and social and professional inclusion, which came into effect on January 1, 2024, replacing the Citizenship Income (RdC);

• The Support for Training and Labour is a labour activation measure, involving participation in training projects, professional qualification and requalification, guidance, job placement, and active labour market policies (Art. 12 of the 2023 Labour Decree). The Support for Training and Work is available to those who do not meet the requirements for access to the Inclusion Allowance. This Support also includes the Universal Civic Service and projects of community benefit. The personalized service agreement may include participation in employment services and training programs provided by the National Program for the Employability Guarantee (GOL) under the NRRP;

• Hiring incentives for beneficiaries of the Inclusion Allowance, for youth employment, particularly for those under 30, NEETs and people with disabilities.

Young people can access unemployment benefits such as NASpI and DIS-COLL if they meet the eligibility criteria and register with the public employment services. DIS-COLL provides support to coordinated and continuous collaborators, project-based workers, research grant holders and PhD students with scholarships.

Reconciliation of private and working life for young people

In Italy, there are various national-level policies and measures aimed at facilitating the reconciliation of private and working life for young people, while also promoting gender equality in the labour market. The main measures include parental leave policies, support for part-time work and the use of agile work (or smart working). Currently, remote work is regulated by individual agreements between employer and employee, allowing for better management of work-life balance.

The National Strategy for Gender Equality (2021–2026), coordinated by the Department for Equal Opportunities, aims to reduce the gender employment gap, promote the participation of women in STEM sectors and encourage the adoption of inclusive corporate policies.

Funding of schemes/initiatives

In Italy, policies and initiatives supporting youth employment are funded through a combination of national resources and European funds, with co-financing mechanisms and partnerships between state institutions and social partners.

The total amount of resources allocated to the National Plan for Youth, Women and Work (PN Giovani, Donne e Lavoro) exceeds 5 billion euros, coming from national co-financing and the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+).

The Development and Cohesion Fund (Fondo per lo Sviluppo e la Coesione, FSC), together with the European Structural Funds, is the main national financial instrument used to implement policies aimed at the development of economic, social and territorial cohesion and the elimination of economic and social disparities. For the current 2021–2027 programming period, the Fund has a total allocation of 77.9 billion euros, net of 15.6 billion allocated to financing NRRP investments.

Quality assurance

The Monitoring Office of the Mission Unit within the Ministry of Labour and Social Policies coordinates monitoring activities related to the implementation of investments and reforms under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, falling within the Ministry’s remit. As part of its activities, the Office is responsible for transmitting to the NRRP General Inspectorate of the Ministry of Economy and Finance the data on the financial progress, as well as the physical and procedural implementation of investments and reforms, including the achievement of the related milestones and targets. 

The Office also verifies the completeness and quality of the data submitted.

The Ministry of Labour and Social Policies has assumed the role of coordinating and supervising active labour market policies, including programs aimed at young people. In particular, the GOL Program (Guarantee of Employability of Workers), funded by the NRRP, provides for a monitoring system based on specific indicators, such as:
 

• The number of young people taken in charge;

• The number of young people enrolled in active labour market policies;

• The employment rate after a certain period following the completion of the intervention.

The 2025 monitoring report, prepared by INAPP, was based on data from the Ministry of Labour and Social Policies’ Unified Information System.