Italian labor court rulings on wrongful dismissal

In early August 2026 Italian courts issued two separate judgments that reinforced employee protections in dismissal cases. On 2 August, the Court of Appeal in Florence upheld a lower‑court order requiring a video‑production company to pay a former post‑production technician 24 months’ salary as severance, finding the dismissal disproportionate despite a brief verbal dispute. The appellate decision affirmed jurisprudence limiting punitive dismissals when misconduct is limited and work resumes without further incident.

Two days later, on 4 August, the Tribunal of Milan declared a generic trial period without clearly defined duties null and ruled the dismissal of a worker, Giulia, unlawful. The court converted her contract to an indefinite‑term agreement, ordered her reinstatement, and awarded compensation, citing a recent Constitutional Court ruling that strengthens employee safeguards. Together, the decisions illustrate a trend in Italian labour jurisprudence toward stricter scrutiny of dismissal justifications and a requirement for precise contractual terms.