Giuliano Poletti | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Minister of Labour and Social Policies | |
| In office 22 February 2014 – 1 June 2018 | |
| Prime Minister | Matteo Renzi Paolo Gentiloni |
| Preceded by | Enrico Giovannini |
| Succeeded by | Luigi Di Maio |
| President ofLegacoop | |
| In office 12 December 2002 – 21 February 2014 | |
| Preceded by | Luca Bernareggi |
| Succeeded by | Mauro Lusetti |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1951-11-19)19 November 1951 (age 73) Imola, Italy |
| Political party | PCI (before 1991) PDS (1991–1998) Independent (1998–2017) PD (since 2017) |
| Spouse | Anna Venturini |
| Profession | Politician |
Giuliano Poletti (Italian pronunciation:[dʒuˈljaːnopoˈletti]; born 19 November 1951) is an Italian politician. He was appointedminister of labour and social policies on 22 February 2014 by Prime MinisterMatteo Renzi, and also served in the cabinet ofPaolo Gentiloni.[1][2]
Poletti was born inImola,[3] in the Province ofBologna, in 1951; his parents were farmers.[4] During 1970s he attended the Agricultural Technical Institute of Imola.
He became a member of theItalian Communist Party and, from 1976 to 1979 he was appointed alderman to Agriculture and Productive Activities in his hometown.[1]
He was later elected at the Provincial Council of Bologna for theDemocratic Party of the Left, the heir of the Communist Party.
On 12 December 2002 Poletti was elected President ofLegacoop, the maincooperative federation in Italy, which he led until 21 February 2014, when he was appointedMinister of Labour and Social Policies in the government ofMatteo Renzi.[5]
Poletti's ministry was characterized by the most important, but also controversial,labour market reform implemented in Italy in the last decades, the so-calledJobs Act.[6]
On 12 March 2014, the Cabinet issued a law-decree on fixed-term contracts, called thePoletti Decree, as well as a bill proposing major reforms to the Italian labour market.[7] A reduction in the tax burden of about €80 was announced for those earning less than €1,500 per month.
In September, the government brought theJobs Act before Parliament, which provided for, among other things, the abolition of Article 18 of the Workers' Statute, which protected workers from unjustified dismissal. The proposal was heavily criticised by the largest Italian trade union, theGeneral Confederation of Labour (CGIL) and its leadersSusanna Camusso andMaurizio Landini.[8] Moreover, the left-wing of the Democratic Party, by then led by the former National SecretaryPier Luigi Bersani, criticised the government for the reform, threatening to vote against it.[9][10]
On 29 September, the National Committee of theDemocratic Party voted to support theJobs Act, despite the disagreements within the party, with 130 votes in favour, 20 against and 11 abstaining.[11] On 9 October theItalian Senate voted to approve theJobs Act, and the landmark reform passed with 165 votes in favour to 111 against, marking the first step for the most ambitious economic legislation of the eight-month-old government. Before the vote Poletti was forced to cut his speech short due to the loud protests of theFive Star Movement andLega Nord oppositions, some of whom threw coins and papers.[12]German ChancellorAngela Merkel, who was visitingMilan and had been among the most vocal politicians regarding Italy's need for speedy economic reforms, said the labour law marked an "important step" to reduce "employment barriers" in the Eurozone's third-largest economy.[13]
On 25 October, almost one million people took part in a mass protest in Rome, organised by theCGIL in opposition to the labour reforms of the government. Some high-profile members of the left-wing faction of the Democratic Party, includingGianni Cuperlo,Stefano Fassina andPippo Civati, also participated in the protest.[14] On 8 November more than 100,000 public employees protested in Rome in a demonstration organised by the three largest trade unions in the country, the CGIL, theCISL and theUIL.[15]
On 25 November, theChamber of Deputies approved theJobs Act with 316 votes, but the Five Star, Lega Nord and almost forty members of the Democratic Party abstained from the vote to protest against the reform.[16] On 3 December the Senate gave theJobs Act the final approval it needed to become law.[17]
On 12 December 2016, when Renzi resigned as Prime Minister after theconstitutional referendum, Poletti was confirmed as Labour Minister by the new Prime MinisterPaolo Gentiloni.[18]
In 2017, after years as aleft-wingindependent politician, Poletti became a member of theDemocratic Party.
Media related toGiuliano Poletti at Wikimedia CommonsRenzi Cabinet (2014–16) | ||
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Prime Minister |  | |