Abstract

In the Italian case, employment recovery since 2013 was impressive, and was partly supported by labor policies that reduced labor costs and the protection for open-ended jobs, while deregulating fixed-term contracts. As is usual when employment increases, fixed-term jobs increased more than open-ended jobs did. The dark side is that job opportunities have been skewed towards low skilled employment. Yet for many reasons public opinion is more worried about job insecurity than about poor quality jobs.