10.6092/issn.1561-8048/10778
application/pdf
1561-8048
10778
1S
en
Elena Sychenko
Italian Labour Law e-Journal
Editorial
Text.Serial.Journal
https://illej.unibo.it/
13
Editorial
2020-04-15
2020-04-14
2020-04-15
2020-09-15
ILLeJ
Elena Sychenko
2020/04/15
10.6092/issn.1561-8048/10778
Saint Petersburg State University
1561-8048
1S
en
Editorial
https://illej.unibo.it/article/download/10778/10716
13
Editorial                                                                       Italian Labour Law e-Journal
Beryl ter Haar, Emanuele Menegatti                                             Special Issue 1, Vol. 13 (2020)
Iacopo Senatori, Elena Sychenko                                  Covid-19 and Labour Law. A Global Review
                                                                                             ISSN 1561-8048
                                                              https://doi.org/10.6092/issn.1561-8048/10778




                                            Editorial
                          Beryl ter Haar, Emanuele Menegatti,
                           Iacopo Senatori, Elena Sychenko*



    This special issue of the Italian Labour Law e-Journal intends to contribute to the on-going
 discussion about the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the social policies of the states
 and to provide a systematic and informative overview on the measures set out by national
 governments.
    While these measures have a drastic impact on the work of people and on business
 operations, they should also be understood as part of a broader strategy that encompasses
 public health and macro-economic concerns.
    Although the precautions suggested by the epidemiologic science to mitigate the spread
 of the disease, like for example social distancing, are the same worldwide, national
 governments and legislators are translating them into specific policies and normative
 solutions, in different attempts to balance health and economic interests. Hence, it is
 important to explore differences and similarities, with a view to identifying diverging patterns
 and common trends.
    For instance, it is useful to understand whether the provisions enacted in different systems
 take into account the different degrees of vulnerability and exposure to risks of the working
 population. One may note in this regard that workers in essential services, inevitably not
 involved in the lockdown measures, first and foremost health workers, as well as informal
 workers are facing increased health and safety risks in the short run. On the other hand,
 those employed in businesses subject to authoritative closures are risking displacement and
 loss of employment in the medium run, if the production and commercial operations will
 not be soon resumed.
    Another interesting issue to address is which different normative techniques and
 lawmaking procedures have been put into practice, including variations in the involvement
 of social partners.
    Finally, it may be instructive to observe the different degrees of readiness shown by the
 ordinary toolkits of labour law and industrial relations in responding and adapting to the
 emergency in different countries. In other words, to find whether and to what extent the
 established body of laws is proving able to cope with the problems raised by the current


 *
  Beryl ter Haar, Assistant Professor, Universiteit Leiden; Emanuele Menegatti, Professor of Labour Law,
 University of Bologna; Iacopo Senatori, Senior Researcher of Labour Law, Marco Biagi Foundation –
 University of Modena and Reggio Emilia; Elena Sychenko, Associate Professor, Saint Petersburg State
 University.
Beryl ter Haar, Emanuele Menegatti                                         Italian Labour Law e-Journal
Iacopo Senatori, Elena Sychenko                                           Special Issue 1, Vol. 13 (2020)
                                                             Covid-19 and Labour Law. A Global Review
                                                                               Section: National Reports




extraordinary situation or whether, on the contrary, new special regulations are being
introduced.
   Likely this experience will leave legislators, practitioners and interpreters a legacy that may
be used as ground work for a future labour law, more responsive and effective. However,
before engaging in any theoretical discussion, it is crucial to collect a consistent amount of
data and information.
   Against such background, this special issue presents an overview of the labour law norms,
institutions and workplace arrangements that are being deployed in the different legal systems
to cope with the global health crisis. The reports presented here will shed light in particular
on the measures enacted to tackle the following problems:

    • The effects of interruption of business operations on employment (e.g. income
support for temporarily unemployed persons; job-saving provisions).
    • The risks on workers’ health and safety (e.g. social distancing and other workplace
arrangements aimed at preventing the risk of infection, use of remote work and other
alternatives to commuting).
    • The increased caregiving duties due to school closures or daycare services stoppages
(e.g. parental leaves; economic support to buy alternative care services).
    • The conditions of particularly vulnerable workers (e.g. self-employed, freelancers,
domestic workers, informal and casual workers).

   We hope that the data collected thanks to the prompt and generous contributions of our
distinguished colleagues from all world continents will form the basis for a further reflection
about the long-term impact of Covid-19 upon labour regulations and about the lessons learnt
through this emergency.




Copyright © 2020 Beryl ter Haar, Emanuele Menegatti, Iacopo Senatori, Elena Sychenko.
This article is released under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.




https://doi.org/10.6092/issn.1561-8048/10778                                                            2
