"Italian companies do not feel blackmailed but Orlando's proposal was not happy'. Thus Maurizio Stirpe, Confindustria's Vice President for Labour and Industrial Relations, commented in an interview with La Repubblica on the controversy with the Minister of Labour over wage increases. "The government's refreshments," he explained, "serve to companies that are in a dramatic situation, after two years of pandemic, to cover unsustainable increases in energy prices. One cannot think of diverting the aid to renew contracts. Also because Confindustria has already renewed the 80% of contracts, we can reach the 92% with those that expired this year'.

And on the loss of the purchasing power of wages eroded by inflation, he pointed out: "Of course, the problem exists and we are facing it. And that is why we have already given the government and the minister a detailed proposal to cut the tax wedge by 16 billion and put more money in the pay envelope'. As for the resources and cover-ups, Stirpe added: "Is it possible that out of 900 billion in public spending there is no room? There are also the 38 billion in extra tax and social security contributions that the state has collected in recent months due to high inflation. These are unplanned revenues, some of which can be used for work. And then it is time to break a taboo: let's tax financial income. It does not seem heresy to say that one should shifting taxation from labour to income, to BOTs, to give an example, or to goods, by remodelling the VAT of the voluptuous ones, even if this hypothesis is not viable now with inflation at 6%.

"After all," the VP added, "you can't 'have it both ways'. The resources are there. If we want to increase the purchasing power of workers with the same labour costs - as called for by Confindustria - we can only act in this way. Increasing labour costs would be a crippling blow to many companies. The 50% already foresees a reduction in volume.

On relations with Minister Orlando and the minimum wageStirpe clarified: "we have different visions of the world of work. On the minimum wage, Confindustria is not against its introductionalso because out of the 377 contract classifications we manage - covering 60 contracts - only in three cases are we below the minimums proposed by Parliament, such as EUR 9 per hour. However, the level of minimum wage must be rebalanced than e.g. the Citizenship Income too high, otherwise if they are equal there is a disincentive to work. The minister's proposal of a minimum wage equal to the total wage - including holidays, thirteenth month, severance pay - of each sector contract is demagogic, high value and unsustainable. It would encourage the use of the black economy and would be a violation of national bargaining'.

On the expected convening of the table proposed by PM Draghi between companies and trade unions on bargaining, Stirpe confirmed: we are waiting for the summons. It would have been better not to make polemics at this time. But ours are not closed positions. And then Pd, Forza Italia and M5S are also in favour of cutting the tax wedge. Let's do it'.

In conclusion, on the rumours about the next aid decree on appropriations for cutting the tax wedge: "If the figures are around one billion, is a 'lukewarm soup'. Appreciable from the point of view of quality of intervention, not quantity'.