Article 60 – Conciliation and arbitration procedures
A. COMPULSORY ATTEMPT AT CONCILIATION
The compulsory attempt at conciliation via the trade union is conducted according to the following procedure:
The trade union conciliation office shall be composed of a representative of the trade union organisation that is a member of the confederation signing this contract to which the worker grants a special mandate and a representative of the regional employers’ association to which the company grants a special mandate. Initially, the administrative tasks of the Office will be carried out by the aforementioned employers’ association.
The worker or, in the case of a series of disputes, the workers, who intend to bring an action before the labour court, may submit a written request by registered letter with return receipt to the administrative office for the compulsory attempt at conciliation via the trade union. A copy of this request must simultaneously be sent by registered letter with return receipt to the company concerned. The request must contain the names of the parties, the subject of the dispute with a detailed and complete statement of the facts, a summary of the attached documents, an address for service at the administrative office, and the name of the representative of the trade union organisation referred to in point 1. to whom a special power of attorney has been granted. The same steps must be followed if the party filing the request is the employer.
The parties, with the designated representatives and, if communicated in advance, with the possible presence of experts belonging to the respective trade union organisations, must meet within 20 days of receipt of the above request in order to examine the dispute and attempt conciliation.
The attempt at conciliation is carried out without a formal structure, including the scheduling of multiple meetings, and must be completed within 60 days from the date of receipt of the request.
If the conciliation is successful, a report is drawn up pursuant to and for the purposes of Article 411, paragraphs 1 and 3, of the Italian Code of Civil Procedure.
The conciliation report signed by the parties shall become enforceable in accordance with Article 411 of the Italian Code of Civil Procedure.
If the conciliation fails, a report shall be drawn up indicating the terms of the dispute, any proposals for settlement and the reasons for the failure to reach an agreement.
The parties may indicate the solution, even a partial one, on which they agree, where possible specifying the amount of the claim the requesting party is entitled to. In the latter case, the report become enforceable, subject to the provisions of Article 411 of the Italian Code of Civil Procedure.
At the request of the parties, the administrative office shall issue a copy of the report on the conciliation or failure to reach an agreement.
B. INFORMAL ARBITRATION
If the attempt at conciliation is unsuccessful, or the term referred to in paragraph 4 of letter A of this agreement has expired, the individual parties concerned may agree to refer the settlement of the dispute to the decision of the Arbitration Board envisaged in Article 412 ter of the Italian Code of Civil Procedure.
Without prejudice to the provisions of Article 412 ter, paragraph 1 of the Italian Code of Civil Procedure, the regional bodies of the trade unions that are signatories to this contract and the regional employers’ associations shall provide for the establishment of an Arbitration Board, even on a permanent basis, in accordance with the following criteria.
The Board is composed of one union representative designated by the worker, one representative of the regional employers’ association designated by the company and the President chosen by mutual agreement.
If the arbitration board is set up on a permanent basis, the President is designated by the regional bodies of the trade unions that are signatories to this agreement and the regional employers’ associations involved.
In the event of failure to agree on the appointment of the President, they shall be chosen – following the manifestation of the will of the parties referred to in the third and fourth paragraphs of point 4 – by rotation or other criteria to be identified at the local level, from a list that is normally reviewable every two years containing the names of at least 10 legal experts, identified by common agreement by the local bodies of the trade unions that are signatories to this agreement and by the regional employers’ associations.
The President for each dispute will be paid a fee, the amount of which will be determined by the parties at the local level.
Every six months administrative expenses will be billed and divided between the contracting organisations.
From time to time the President must declare in writing that none of the cases envisaged in Article 51 of the Italian Code of Civil Procedure apply.
The request to refer the dispute to the arbitration board must contain the name of the requesting party, an address for service at the administrative office of the board and a statement of facts.
The request signed by the party concerned must be sent by registered mail with return receipt to the administrative office of the Board and to the other party through the Trade Union Organisation or the Employers’ Association to which it has granted a mandate within the period of 30 days starting from the day of the issuance of the report referred to in point 6., part a) of this article or from the day of the expiry of the period within which such attempt could be made.
Within the next 15 days from the sending of the registered letter with return receipt referred to in the preceding paragraph, the requesting party will inform the administrative office in writing of its intention to refer the matter to the Board, at the same time sending a copy of the acknowledgement of receipt of the communication sent to the other party. If confirmation is not received within this period, the request for arbitration is deemed to be revoked. The request may be conditioned by the arbitrators’ obligation to comply with the mandatory provisions of the law and of this CCNL.
If the other party intends to accept the request, it must notify the administrative office of the Board within 15 days from the date of receipt of the request.
The request and acceptance must contain the parties’ written declaration of acceptance of the names of the board of arbitrators representing the parties, as well as of the president to be designated pursuant to point 2. and of the granting to such board of the power to decide in an impartial manner, without prejudice to the provisions of the third paragraph above.
The arbitrators’ acceptance to deal with the dispute must be in writing.
Any preliminary investigation of the dispute shall take place mainly orally, in the manner to be determined by the Board at its first meeting.
The Board may freely question the parties concerned, as well as persons who are informed of the facts.
The parties may be assisted by trade unions and/or trusted experts.
Within the peremptory terms set by the Board, the parties may file documents, briefs and replies with the administrative office.
The Board shall render its decision within 60 days from the date the administrative office receives the written confirmation referred to in Section 4 above. If the dispute is particularly complex in terms of investigation, the term may be extended by the arbitrators in agreement with the parties by up to 120 days.
The decision shall be taken by a majority vote of the arbitrators and shall be in writing.
The decision is communicated through the administrative office to the parties and is enforceable, subject to compliance with the rules laid down in the second paragraph of Article 412 quater of the Italian Code of Civil Procedure.
Without prejudice to the fact that the parties to the dispute shall bear the costs and fees due to the arbitrators indicated in the Board of Arbitrators representing each of them, any other expenses of the arbitration proceedings, including the fees and expenses of the President, shall be settled in accordance with Articles 91, paragraph 1, and 92 of the Italian Code of Civil Procedure.
The Board’s decision may be challenged before the competent court on the grounds of error, duress and fraud, as well as for non-compliance with the provisions of Article 412 ter of the Italian Civil Code and mandatory statutory provisions in the case referred to in the third paragraph of section 4. above.
All questions concerning the interpretation and/or application of this Article shall be referred to the exclusive decision of the signatory parties to this Agreement, which shall reach their decision in a spirit of amicable settlement.
This without prejudice to any agreements on the matter reached at the local level.