Abstract

This paper deals with the topicality and obsolescence profiles of the Workers’ Statute with reference to its scope of application and, in particular, the regulatory differences between large and small en- terprises. Through the analysis of articles 35 and 18 of Act n. 300, it questions the validity of the dimensional limits provided for the application of the protection against unlawful dismissal, in a profoundly changed economic, productive and social context. From this point of view, the article presents two goals. In the first place, it intends to examine the reasonableness of the dimensional criterion in the application of the discipline of the Statute, in the light of the doctrinal and jurisprudential debate developed around the constitutional legitimacy of this regulatory distinction. In the second place, it intends to verify the soundness of the original regulatory framework, with regard to both the matter of dismissal and that of union representatives in the workplace. From the examination of these two dimensions comes the idea of proposing some legislative changes aimed at ensuring legal protection to many thousands of workers who today are deprived of it.