An Odd-Jobs Republic. The 2025 Referendum in Italy and the Long Decline of Labour Rights
Italy’s June 2025 referendum aimed to put labour rights and job insecurity back at the centre of political debate. Yet with turnout stuck at just over 30%, it failed to reach the quorum—reflecting decades of reforms that have weakened protections, fragmented careers, and turned flexibility into structural precarity. From the “Treu Package” to the Jobs Act, legislative choices have reshaped the very meaning of work, eroding its social value and excluding many, especially migrants, from full citizenship. Understanding this trend is key to rethinking labour, rights, and belonging in 21st-century Italy.
