The right to work is one of the fundamental pillars of the Italian Constitution (Articles 1 and 4); it is granted to everyone as an instrument for the social, economic and material development of the Nation. However, the Italian Government is free to define certain areas of economic initiative (Article 41) that are considered strategic and of high interest. Italian legislation safeguards the learning of professional skills and the development of an apprenticeship, with no distinction between different types of migrants: asylum seekers and refugees, for example, can be employed after 60 days from the authorisation to stay in Italy. Instead, in Italy, access to employment, from which so-called economic migration can result, is decided by the Presidency of the Minister Council by adopting a specific Flows Decree that indicates the quotas of foreign workers admitted to Italy, divided by type of employment, residence permit and nationality. The governance of active labour policies is substantially decentralised: Ministry of Labour and Social Policies (MLPS) decides the guidelines and manages the national and European budget; the Regions and the Municipalities, respectively, are the operative body, through the Labour Orientation Centres (COL) and the Employment Centres (CPI). The policies for the job placement and training of migrants are carried out by local institutions in cooperation with third sector organisations, through dedicated declarations of intent or, more commonly, by the ordinary reception system (SPRAR/SIPROIMI). The ordinary reception system offers a job orientation service that is combined with other personal support measures (e.g. housing support and pocket money) that is always aimed at the implementation of paid work placement and training for beneficiaries. Calabria is one of the regions with the highest number of ordinary reception projects and the highest rate of residence permits over 12 months (MLPS, 2019). Being a regional economy mainly oriented to agricultural and food production, migrants are employed in this sector, especially in small and medium internal urban areas. There are also significant examples of selfemployment and entrepreneurship compared to the national level. Among the main problems, there is the decrease in the supply of agricultural products and the consequent crisis of the productive sector, as well as the illegal exploitation of migrant workers through the peculiar form of the “Caporalato”, an illicit intermediation promoted by criminal organisations. In the local cases analysed, a strong capacity was found by the third sector organisations to use and innovate active job policies directed to the employment integration and qualification of asylum seekers and refugees, despite the specific conditions of the regional labour market.

DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.5082832