Italy Scraps 60-Day Grace Period for Workplace Safety Training
Published on 10/31/2026 at 06:10 | Editorial boerse-global.de
Employers in Italy can no longer count on a two-month cushion to get new hires through mandatory safety training. Under guidance issued by the country's labour inspectorate, instruction required by Article 37(4) of Legislative Decree 81/2008 must now begin the moment an employment relationship is established.
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The clarification comes in Note No. 2377 of 27 October 2026 from the Ispettorato Nazionale del Lavoro (INL), the national labour inspectorate, and was reported on 29 October 2026. It formally retires the 60-day window that had been widely relied upon under the State-Regions Agreement (Accordo Stato-Regioni) of 21 December 2011.
The reason lies in the newer State-Regions Agreement of 2025 (No. 59/CSR of 17 April 2025), which did not carry over the old 60-day transitional period.
Inspectors get a single rulebook
Publication of the note also hands the INL's own inspection staff operational instructions. Reported on 30 October 2026, the guidance is meant to ensure the rules under Article 37 of Decree 81/2008 are applied consistently during checks.
Enforcement procedures for formal orders change as well. Where undeclared work under Article 14 of Decree 81/2008 has led to a suspension of business activity, the measure can be lifted simply by completing the required training as soon as possible.
At the same time, the 60-day deadline previously written into the compliance order (Verbale di prescrizione) under Article 20 of Decree 758/1994 disappears. Inspectors will instead set a deadline strictly tied to the maximum time technically needed to deliver the training.
Tourism and hospitality: 30 days, with proof on demand
Hotels, restaurants and other tourism and hospitality businesses fall under separate statutory rules in Article 1-bis of Decree-Law 159/2025, converted into Law 198/2025. General training there — plus any specific instruction required — must be fully completed within 30 days of the employment relationship starting. Training itself must still begin immediately on the first day of work.
Should an inspection land inside that 30-day window, the INL expects employers to show documented evidence that arrangements are already under way. Acceptable proof includes booking receipts sent via certified electronic mail (PEC), involvement of a joint parity body (Organismo paritetico), confirmation that trainers have been engaged, or the participation of the company's workers' safety representatives (RLS).
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No such evidence during a check is treated by inspectors as a breach of Article 37(1) of Decree 81/2008.
Short contracts demand tailored programmes
Extra care is required for employment relationships lasting less than 30 days. Here the INL says the safety training must be scaled to match the length of the contract.
Whatever the training schedule or contract type, companies remain fully bound by their general duty to inform workers under Article 36 of Decree 81/2008 — an obligation that starts on day one.
