Eurofound's EU PolicyWatch collates information on the responses of government and social partners to the COVID-19 crisis, the war in Ukraine, rising inflation, as well as gathering examples of company practices aimed at mitigating the social and economic impacts.
Factsheet for measure IT-2021-30/3626 – measures in Italy
| Country | Italy , applies nationwide |
| Time period | Open ended, started on 18 July 2021 |
| Context | Digital Transformation |
| Type | Bipartite collective agreements |
| Category |
Promoting the economic, labour market and social recovery into a green future
– Active labour market policies (enhancing employability, training, subsidised job creation, etc.) |
| Author | Lisa Dorigatti (University of Milan) and Eurofound |
| Measure added | 11 December 2024 (updated 09 June 2025) |
MetApprendo was established in response to Article 7, Section 4, Title VI of the National Collective Labor Agreement (NCBA) for the metalworking and plant installation industry signed on February 5, 2021. The association was created to promote and facilitate training organization, planning, and recording, particularly focusing on supporting smaller companies in implementing workers' "subjective right to training" as outlined in the NCBA. The association operates as an unrecognized non-profit association under Articles 36 and following of the Italian Civil Code.
MetApprendo serves two main categories of beneficiaries: first of all, there are the members of the founding parties (Federmeccanica, Assistal, FIM-CISL, FIOM-CGIL, UILM-UIL), the territorial branches of the unions (FIM, FIOM, UILM), industrial associations affiliated with Confindustria, and companies that have paid the required one-time contribution according to the NCBA. Second, there are member companies applying the metalworking and plant installation NCBA that are up to date with their contributions, their employees, and employees of the territorial union branches and Confindustria-affiliated industrial associations.
MetApprendo's core purpose is to provide technical tools and various support mechanisms to facilitate training activities, with a particular focus on helping smaller companies implement the "subjective right to training" and enhance workers' professional skills. The association does this by promoting and facilitating training organization, planning, and documentation according to the guidelines set by the "National Commission for Professional Training and Apprenticeship". No specific monetary amount provided.
The monetary support structure is based on a one-time company contribution of €1.50 per employee, including managers, who were employed as of December 31, 2020. This applies even though managers are not covered by the metalworking and plant installation industry's CCNL.
MetApprendo shows significant reach in the metalworking sector, with 13,000 active companies out of 17,000 member companies. The most recent operational year (2023-2024) accounts for 23,458 training hours, averaging 17.4 hours per dossier, indicating increased usage since the portal became operational. Currently, 203 companies have activated employee dossiers, with a distribution showing participation across all company sizes: 41 micro enterprises (1-9 employees), 30 small companies (10-19 employees), 43 medium-sized companies (20-49 employees), and 89 larger companies (50+ employees).
| Workers | Businesses | Citizens |
|---|---|---|
| Applies to all workers | Applies to all businesses | Does not apply to citizens |
| Actors | Funding |
|---|---|
|
Social partners jointly
Company / Companies |
Companies
|
Social partners' role in designing the measure and form of involvement:
| Trade unions | Employers' organisations | |
|---|---|---|
| Role | Agreed (outcome) incl. social partner initiative | Agreed (outcome) incl. social partner initiative |
| Form | Not applicable | Not applicable |
Social partners' role in the implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:
The involvement of social partners was formally established through the NCBA for the metalworking sector signed on February 5, 2021, specifically in Article 7, Section 4, Title VI. The organization was jointly created by employer associations (Federmeccanica and Assistal) and trade unions (FIM-CISL, FIOM-CGIL, and UILM-UIL), who are equal founding partners. This parity is reflected in the governance structure: the Assembly consists of 12 delegates, equally split between union and employer representatives, while the Management Board includes 10 members plus President and Vice President, maintaining the same balanced representation.
The unanimity in establishing and managing the association suggests alignment on its objectives and methods, with no indication of disagreement.
This case is sector-specific
| Economic area | Sector (NACE level 2) |
|---|---|
| C - Manufacturing | C25 Manufacture of fabricated metal products, except machinery and equipment |
This case is occupation-specific
| Occupation (ISCO level 2) |
|---|
| Metal, machinery and related trades workers |
Citation
Eurofound (2024), Metapprendo, measure IT-2021-30/3626 (measures in Italy), EU PolicyWatch, Dublin, https://static.eurofound.europa.eu/covid19db/cases/IT-2021-30_3626.html
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Disclaimer: This information has not been subject to the full Eurofound evaluation, editorial and publication process.