Work at Meloni’s office could be partially disrupted on Thursday as employees protest new restrictions on remote work.
The dispute was triggered by a government decision to cut the maximum number of work-from-home days to 52 per year. Employees were previously allowed to work remotely for twice as many days.
Workers say conditions in government offices remain poor, citing overcrowded rooms, inadequate building maintenance and even pests, including pigeons and Asian hornets.
The prime minister’s secretariat employs about 3,500 administrative and technical staff. Their workplaces are spread across roughly 20 buildings in Rome, including historic 16th-century palaces.
The USB trade union said the sharp reduction in remote work directly worsens working conditions. Union representatives argue that the government failed to take into account daily commuting problems and employees’ need to balance work and personal life.
The new rules were approved in April by Carlo Deodato, the administrative head of the government office. He said the change was justified by the complexity of the tasks carried out by prime ministerial staff and the need for more frequent in-office work.
The document states that effective government management requires a balance between flexibility for workers and the ability to respond quickly to state challenges and priorities.
Unions argue that mandatory office presence four days a week during fixed hours will undermine work-life balance and force employees to spend more time and money commuting.
The government says the new policy is intended to move beyond ideological disputes over remote work and create a modern, efficient public administration system. Officials argue that greater office presence will improve speed, quality and performance.
Pregnant women, parents of young children and employees with disabilities will retain broader access to flexible working arrangements. The government also pledged to continuously assess the impact of the rules and amend them if necessary.
Italy began introducing remote and flexible work in 2017, when the government legalized such arrangements to support parents and people caring for relatives. Remote work became widespread during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, when most office employees shifted to working from home.
The FT noted that many Italian ministries and public institutions currently allow employees to work remotely eight to 12 days per month.
Governments and companies across Europe and the United States have increasingly pushed employees back to offices in recent years as they seek to restore pre-pandemic working patterns.
After unsuccessful attempts to secure negotiations with Meloni’s inner circle, unions called a one-day strike.