Ebitemp: national bilateral organization for temporary employment
Mission
Ebitemp is the national bilateral organization for temporary employment, established in 2000 through a contractual agreement between the trade unions and employers’ associations in the temporary employment sector. The two Representative Associations for Employment Agencies [in Italian: Agenzie per il Lavoro] – ApL (Assolavoro and Assosomm), the temporary workers’ Trade Union Organizations (FeLSA-CISL, Nidil Cgil and UILTemp) and the three Trade Union Confederations (CGIL, CISL and UIL) are all associated with Ebitemp.
Ebitemp is a non-profit organisation and it acts on behalf of both the workers and the agencies.
Ebitemp has a dual function within a framework of labour relations based on the aims of development and qualification of production and employment in the sector:
- management of bilateral arrangements and trade union rights in the field of agency work;
- safeguarding and protecting of agency workers in accordance with the benefits defined in the national collection bargaining agreement.
To achieve its aims, Ebitemp relies on contributions paid by Employment Agencies, in the measure specified in the bargaining between the parties.
History
The decision by the trade unions and business associations to establish Ebitemp, the bilateral organisation for temporary employment, was made on 28 May 28 1998, with the signing of the sector’s first collective agreement. Bilateralism was identified as a methodology and tool to ensure temporary workers innovative forms of protection to mitigate the inconvenience of discontinuous employment.
During the first renewal of the collective agreement, in 2002, the first activities were launched for the protection of workers: in particular, accident compensation, a benefit that extends beyond the termination of the employment relationship, and the establishment of a guarantee fund. This provided temporary workers with access to personal credit with more favourable conditions and simpler procedures than those adopted by the banking system.
The renewal of the collective agreement signed in July 2008 provided a true welfare system for the sector, with the aim of creating a system capable of responding to the changing needs of the workers. The new collective agreement, in addition to extending the services offered by Ebitemp to agency workers, stated that agency work assignments could be extended up to 36 months with no obligation to hire; however, if 36 months of continuous work in a single company were exceeded, the agency had to employ the worker on a permanent basis.
Other highly innovative aspects of the agreement renewed in 2008 were the establishment of a supplementary pension fund for agency workers and the great attention given to safety in the workplace.
On 1 February 2017, Ebitemp launched new welfare services for agency workers: the Social Partners in the sector extended and increased the range of safeguards for workers by providing contributions to support the education of workers and their children, inter-city travel, maternity/adoption, nursery expenses (also extended to working fathers) and contributions for workers with dependent family members who are not self-sufficient.
The renewal of the sector’s national collective labour agreement in 2019 further expanded the range of benefits provided, to cover workers’ needs more effectively and incisively. The maximum coverage limit of many of the benefits has been raised and several regulations have been revised in a more inclusive perspective. The range of health protection benefits has been significantly expanded, with the introduction of new packages specifically for the reimbursement of private services.
The renewal of the sector’s collective agreement, signed on 15 October 2019, has introduced greater safeguards for female workers and agency workers. The most significant developments manage to combine the sector’s needs with improved forms to reinforce rights and safeguards and greater employment support measures. It also includes the optimisation of actions aimed at personal requalification and enhancement of welfare under the agreement. This all entails a significant increase in the number of applicants for Ebitemp’s services. Our challenge over the coming years is to make the Bilateral Organisation an increasingly active and concrete reference point for both female and male workers and for companies. Responding to this challenge means implementing innovative methods and tools to meet the needs of an increasingly dynamic and constantly evolving employment market. For this reason, we are already working to implement a Digital Transformation that will allow us to perform increasingly complex functions with efficient and prompt solutions.
Giuseppe Biazzo, President of Ebitemp
Lucia Anile, Vice President of Ebitemp
Structure
President
Alessandro Ramazza
Vice-President
Luca Barilà
Director
Enrico Giuntini
Assembly
The Assembly is composed of 30 equal members representing the workers’ and employers’ unions. The Assembly, which is normally convened three times a year, decides on initiatives to implement the purposes of Ebitemp and elects the President, Vice President and Board of Directors.
Board of Directors
Ebitemp is governed by a Board of Directors made up of the President, the Vice President and other members elected by the Assembly. The Board of Directors has all powers of ordinary and extraordinary administration.
Board of Auditors
The Board of Auditors is made up of three members (one nominated by the trade unions, one nominated by the employers’ associations and one chosen by mutual agreement) and performs the surveillance tasks required by the Italian Civil Code. All the bodies, with the exception of the Board of Statutory Auditors, have equal membership among the parties to the agreement. For the performance of its institutional tasks, Ebitemp relies on a structure composed of employees and external collaborators, under the operational responsibility of a Director.
Members
ASSOLAVORO – National Association of Employment Agencies
Assolavoro is the National Association of Employment Agencies (ApL), established on 18 October 2006 through the merger of the three previous representative bodies. It brings together Employment Agencies that produce over 85% of the total turnover from agency work, with over 2,500 branches throughout Italy.
The Association was created to ensure the highest standards of protection and representation to the local authorities, as well as an integrated support and information service. It is recognised as a Social Partner and regularly participates in hearings convened by the Government and Parliamentary Bodies to contribute to the drafting of new regulations and fact-finding surveys on the employment market. Assolavoro is a member of Confindustria and is the Italian representative of World Employment Confederation – Europe, the European Confederation of Employment Agencies.
ASSOSOMM – Italian Association of Employment Agencies
Assosomm is the Italian Association of Employment Agencies, established with the aim of uniting, safeguarding and promoting the interests of its Associates and of supporting and strengthening the entire sector through initiatives to assist the development and evolution of agency work activities. Assossomm is now a new and innovative type of Association, dynamic, attentive and ready to listen to the opinions and proposals of all its Members. Assosomm’s purpose is to formulate the numerous requests of its Members into institutional and social petitions and to provide the utmost support in operational, legal and contractual terms.
FeLSA-CISL
FeLSA-Cisl (the Federation of Agency, Self-employed and Non-standard Workers), created through the decision by CISL to merge ALAI and CLACS, has been operating officially since 15 October 2009. FeLSA gives a voice to the world of non-standard employment: agency, coordinated collaboration, VAT-registered and self-employed, the latter expressed in the numerous professional associations and trade unions in the sector.
Nidil Cgil (New work identities)
NIdiL Cgil is a signatory of the agency workers’ collective agreement, which gives rights and safeguards to agency employees who work for user companies. NIdiL CGIL is committed to fighting against the improper use of parasubordinate contracts and self-employment.
UILTemp
The National Association of Temporary, Self-employed, Non-standard and VAT-registered Workers (formerly Uil Cpo) assists and upholds the rights of all non-standard, temporary and parasubordinate workers and VAT-registered workers. Living in dignity must not be a utopia, but a concrete possibility given to all; with no exceptions.