The 2025 Workplace Safety Decree (Law Decree no. 159 of 31 October 2025) has been published in the Official Gazette, introducing important amendments to Legislative Decree 81/2008 concerning health, safety and construction sites. The aim of the measure is to strengthen the culture of prevention, increase traceability and digitalise safety management processes. The main new provisions concern the introduction of the digital construction-site badge, the tightening of the credit-based licence, new provisions on PPE, training, health surveillance and an INAIL reward system for virtuous companies.
The information currently available comes from preliminary versions and may be subject to change until the final text is approved.
One of the most significant points is the strengthening of the role of the Workers’ Safety Representative (RLS). All companies with employees will have to identify an RLS, with no possibility of waiver through an agreement between the parties. The designated worker must complete the mandatory 32-hour training before formal appointment and maintain the annual refresher training of 4 or 8 hours, depending on the number of workers. The new decree also provides that, for companies employing fewer than 15 workers, national collective bargaining will regulate the procedures for the periodic refresher-training obligation, in compliance with the principle of proportionality and taking into account the size of the company and the level of health and safety risk arising from the activity carried out. A strengthening of training and supervision is also envisaged, with the aim of increasing awareness and prevention within companies.
The decree also introduces important measures for strengthening controls and traceability on construction sites. All companies operating under contract or subcontract, whether public or private, will have to provide workers with an identification badge with a unique anti-counterfeiting code, also in digital format, interoperable with the SIISL platform. The National Labour Inspectorate (INL) will focus its supervisory activities on subcontracting companies and, from 2026, credits on the credit-based licence will also be deducted on the basis of new sanctionable cases, with updated amounts and stricter procedures. A strengthening of the INL is also planned, with 300 new hires between 2026 and 2028 and an increase in the Carabinieri Labour Protection unit, in order to make inspection activity more effective.
Health surveillance and the role of the occupational physician
The decree clarifies that the health checks provided for by the Consolidated Act or ordered by the occupational physician must be counted as working time, with the exception of pre-employment checks. With the introduction of the new letter a-bis to art. 25 of Legislative Decree 81/2008, the occupational physician also takes on the task of informing workers about the importance of cancer prevention, promoting participation in the screening programmes provided for by the Essential Levels of Care (LEA), including through information campaigns prepared by the Ministry of Health.
Health surveillance also includes the targeted medical examination in the event of a well-founded suspicion of alcohol or narcotic or psychotropic substance use, to be carried out before or during the work shift for duties classified as high risk under Law 125/2001 and Presidential Decree 309/1990. The decree extends to 31 December 2026 the deadline for revising the procedures for alcohol and drug-dependence checks provided for by art. 41, paragraph 4-bis of Legislative Decree 81/08.
In summary, the 2025 Workplace Safety Decree marks a decisive step towards a more modern, integrated and digital safety system, aimed at strengthening prevention, enhancing training and protecting workers’ health more effectively. The measure is currently being converted into law and will be completed by the implementing decrees that will define its operational and application aspects.
CSIA remains, as always, available for any further information.
