Italy witnessed widespread discontent on Monday as Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s rightist government announced cuts to a poverty relief scheme that will impact hundreds of thousands of people.
In Naples, trade unionists and far-left activists organized a rally outside the welfare agency INPS headquarters, while in a small Sicilian town, an unemployed man threatened to set the mayor’s office on fire in protest.
The scheme in question, known as the “citizen wage,” was introduced in 2019 to provide subsidies to those in need. However, it is now slated to be gradually withdrawn between August and December, being replaced with less generous programs.
Around 160,000 individuals received a harsh message from INPS last week, informing them that they would no longer be eligible for the scheme. The opposition Democratic Party’s leader, Elly Schlein, criticized this method of communication as “brutal.”
Last year, the “citizen wage” benefited 1.7 million households and 3.6 million people, with an average monthly payment of 551 euros ($607.81) per household, according to INPS. As long as recipients did not refuse job offers, there was no expiration date for the subsidy.
The government’s decision to curtail the scheme in May was justified by their belief that it enabled people to become complacent and rely solely on subsidies. They argued that only those physically unable to work should be eligible for benefits.
As part of Meloni’s reform, about 436,000 families with able-bodied members are set to receive a smaller 350-euro monthly subsidy starting from September, provided they enroll in job training schemes for a maximum of 12 months.
However, concerns have arisen as registration procedures for accessing the new subsidies are not yet fully available. This has raised fears that payments may be delayed, leaving people without income support for an extended period.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Luca Ciriani defended the cut, stating that support should be reserved for those who cannot work, while those capable of working should do so to uphold their dignity. He asserted that there would be no backtracking on this decision.
