By Law No. 112/2026, published in the Official Gazette and in force from 27 June 2026, Decree-Law No. 62/2026, known as ‘Labour Decree’, laying down urgent provisions on fair wage, employment incentives and the fight against digital labour exploitation, was converted into law.
The conversion law brings certain amendments to the provisions already laid down by the decree-law, with particular reference to the definition of overall remuneration package (TEC) for the purposes of determining the ‘fair’ wage, and introduces specific provisions concerning i) proximity collective bargaining, ii) secondment, iii) staff leasing, iv) workers with disabilities, and v) extracurricular traineeships.
The provisions concerning social contribution relief measures for the recruitment of disadvantaged persons under the age of 35, disadvantaged women and persons assigned to a workplace located in one of the ZES regions remain unaffected.
Unless otherwise specified, any legislative reference is to be understood as referring to Decree-Law No. 62/2026, as converted by Law No. 112/2026.
Definition of overall remuneration package (art. 7, para. 4-bis)
The remuneration items to be considered for the purpose of identifying the overall remuneration package (TEC) are specified. This package, as established by the NCBAs entered into by the employers’ and workers’ organisations that are comparatively most representative at national level, having regard to i) the relevant sector and production category, ii) the main or prevailing activity carried out by the employer and iii) the size and legal nature of the employer, determines a ‘fair’ wage that is adequate to the quantity and quality of the work performed by the worker.
The TEC consists of all fixed and continuous remuneration items, whether direct, indirect or deferred, as defined by the above NCBAs, including:
– additional monthly payments and fixed and continuous allowances;
– contractual welfare benefits due to the generality of employees;
– any other institutions or allowances having economic value.
Discretionary and variable remuneration items granted to individual workers are, by contrast, excluded from the definition of TEC.
NCBA renewals (art. 10)
In order further to ensure continuity of workers’ economic protection, stricter amendments have been made to the provisions already laid down by Decree-Law No. 62/2026 concerning NCBA renewals.
In particular, the period after which workers employed by employers applying NCBAs that have not been renewed may benefit from a pay adjustment, by way of flat-rate advance on the pay increase, is reduced from 12 to 9 months from the expiry date of the NCBA set by the Parties, excluding sectors marked by high seasonality. The adjustment is increased from 30% to 50% of the change in the consumer price index net of imported energy products (IPCA-NEI).
It is confirmed that such adjustment applies with reference to NCBAs expiring after 1 May 2026, while, as regards NCBAs that have already expired, the new provisions apply from 1 January 2027.
Proximity collective bargaining (art. 7-bis)
Amendments are made with regard to proximity collective bargaining, namely the specific agreements signed at company or territorial level by workers’ associations that are comparatively most representative at national or territorial level, or by their trade union representatives operating within the company, which, where signed on the basis of a majority criterion relating to those trade union representatives, are effective in respect of all workers in the company, irrespective of trade union affiliation (art. 8 of Decree-Law No. 138/2011, converted, with amendments, by Law No. 148/2011).
It is provided that, from 27 June 2026, such agreements must be filed with (art. 8, para. 1-bis, of Decree-Law No. 138/2011, converted, with amendments, by Law No. 148/2011):
– the Directorate-General for Employment Relations and Industrial Relations of the Ministry of Labour and Social Policies;
– the national archive of collective labour agreements of CNEL.
Where such agreements are entered into at company level and applied by employers employing up to 15 employees, they must be signed at company level and executed at the territorially competent office of the National Labour Inspectorate.
The employer is required formally to inform the workers affected by any less favourable treatment provided for by the proximity agreement within three days of the date on which that agreement is signed.
Secondment of workers (art. 16-quater)
By way of derogation from the rules on secondment as set by art. 30 of Legislative Decree No. 276/2003, in order to safeguard employment levels, preserve professional skills and avoid recourse to subsidised furlough and redundancy procedures, the secondment of one or more workers is permitted, in compliance with the duties performed by them and subject to an agreement entered into at trade union level, also where:
– the seconding employer has no specific interest of its own,
– the companies do not belong to the same sector,
– the companies do not apply the same collective labour agreement.
This option is available on an experimental basis for the period from 27 June 2026 to 31 December 2029.
A dedicated ministerial decree will define the methods for implementing the above provision.
Staff leasing (art. 16-quinquies)
New provisions are introduced in relation to open-ended staff leasing contracts.
By the introduction of art. 19, para. 2-bis, of Legislative Decree No. 81/2015, it is established that the overall duration limit, including non-continuous periods, of fixed-term assignments that a worker employed under staff leasing may perform with the same user is 36 months.
This limit applies to assignment periods commenced from 27 June 2026:
– provided that the assignments concern duties at the same level and in the same legal category,
– unless the collective agreement applied by the user provides otherwise.
Any clause intended to limit, even indirectly, the user’s right to recruit the worker either during or at the end of the assignment period is null and void.
Employment placement of persons with disabilities (art. 6-ter)
The legislature also intervenes by extending the protections provided for workers with disabilities (art. 8 of Law No. 68/1999).
It is provided that workers with disabilities retain the position acquired, upon placement in the company, within the ranking list of unemployed persons with disabilities, not only in the event of dismissal due to reduction of personnel or objective justified reason (art. 8, para. 5, of Law No. 68/1999), but also where they are recruited under i) a fixed-term employment contract or ii) an apprenticeship contract.
This right may be relied upon by the worker with disabilities until the employment relationship is converted or an open-ended employment contract is entered into.
Duration of extracurricular traineeships in groups of companies (art. 4-bis)
The maximum duration limit for extracurricular traineeships (art. 1, paras. 720 to 726, of Law No. 234/2021) is set at 12 months in total for each group of companies.
We remain available for any further clarification.