Italian Authorities Allow Companies To Lay Off Employees In Extreme Weather Areas

Illustration of drought due to extreme weather in Europe. (Wikimedia Commons/Marc Herff)

JAKARTA - Workers in areas hit by forest fires may be asked to stay at home, under the new steps introduced by the Italian government in response to a climate emergency.

At least seven people have died in recent days, as Italy faces high temperatures in the southern part of the country and a devastating storm in the northern part.

PM Giorgia Meloni's administration yesterday approved a decision to allow construction and agricultural companies to disburse staff in high-temperature areas.

Under existing regulations in Italy, companies can apply for temporary layoffs - usually to face a slump in business - no more than 52 weeks in two years, or 90 days per year in the agricultural sector.

The scheme has now been expanded to allow building and agricultural companies, which have been hit a lot by heat waves as their employees are unable to work from home, to lay off their employees without having to calculate them as part of the overall limit.

"This move will take effect for this year," said Tennis Calderone Minister of Manpower after a night cabinet meeting.

A draft shows that the decision will burden the country by 10 million euros. The government previously said some of the costs could be covered by funds allocated to the regular leave program, which is not expected to be fully used.

Meanwhile, the heat waves that hit much of Italy's southern region have had a huge impact on the island of Sicily, causing forest fires that killed three people.

Meanwhile, Catania, which is located near Mount Etna in eastern Sicily, has been hit by a power outage and water supply that is partly blamed by local officials due to hot weather. The city is also struggling to make its airport fully operational again

It is known that Vincenzo Bellini Catania Airport will only resume full operation at the earliest next week, after the fire earlier last week caused many flights to be canceled or diverted to other airports.

While heat waves swept across Italy's southern region, in the north, major storms in Milan and other cities flew roofs of houses and overturned hundreds of trees, blocking roads, damaging parked cars, disrupting transportation.

Lombardy's area around Milan has asked the government to declare a state of emergency and estimate more than 40 million euros in damage.

It is known that the state of emergency, approved by the government, removes bureaucratic barriers and speeds up procedures to provide financial assistance.