Abstract

One of the exceptions to the law against dismissing working mothers is the termination of a work relationship due to the expiration of a fixedterm contract. This essay addresses this protection's legal configuration, focusing on the questions it raises about protecting women who have fixed-term contracts, when these contracts are terminated in a discriminatory manner. The termination of fixed-term contracts, or the choice to not extend or renew fixed-term contracts, related to maternity, are situations that lack legal protection. The author seeks to demonstrate how integrating maternity protection for with anti-discriminatory protection could provide security for working mothers with fixed-term contracts, which is a growing employment category for Italian women, particularly following the reform effected with d.lgs 368/2001.