You are in

Social security benefits those engaged in strenuous work

Publication: 13/04/2022

It is the possibility of accessing early pension with reduced requirements, intended for civil servants or private dependent workers who carry out particularly tiring and heavy work activities, defined as strenuous.

The benefit is intended for workers:

  • engaged in particularly strenuous tasks;
  • who perform night-time work in shifts and/or for the whole year;
  • engaged in the so-called “chain line”;
  • who drive vehicles with a total capacity of at least nine seats that are used for public transport services.

Particularly strenuous jobs are understood to mean:

  • “work in tunnels, quarries or mines”, work carried out underground;
  • “work in quarries”, work carried out by those working in stone or ornamental material quarries;
  • “work in tunnels”, work carried out by those working in development and progress;
  • “work in compressed-air caissons”;
  • “work carried out by deep-sea divers”;
  • “work at high temperatures”, work that exposes individuals to high temperatures, where preventative measures are not possible. By way of example, work undertaken by dependent workers of second smelting foundries, which are not controlled remotely, refractory workers, and dependent workers of manual casting operations;
  • “hollow glass processing”, work carried out in the hollow glass industry by hand and breath;
  • “work performed in confined spaces” and in particular in activities involved in shipbuilding, ship repair and ship maintenance, or work carried out within confined spaces such as crawlspaces, manholes, false floors, on-board or in large structural blocks;
  • “asbestos removal work”.

Start date

INPS shall communicate the date the first payment of the pension will be made to the individual concerned, if the claim for access to the benefit is granted. In order to be eligible for the pension benefits, the individual concerned must apply for a pension for which the acceptance is subject to the existence of any other legal condition (e.g. termination of the employment relationship).

From 01 January 2017, the so-called “mobile windows” (i.e. the deferral of the starting date of the pension by 12 months for dependent workers, or by 18 months for self-employed workers, from meeting the requirements) shall not apply to the pension benefits to be paid to workers who carry out particularly tiresome and heavy tasks.

Requirements

In order to be eligible for early pension with the concessional requirements, the usual activity must be carried out for at least seven years during the last ten years of work or for at least half of the total working life.

From 2016 to 2026, the facilitated requirements for early pension are:

  • for workers engaged in particularly strenuous tasks (so-called “chain line” workers, drivers of public service vehicles, night workers on shift work for 78 working days or more per year or night workers on shift work for periods of the entire working year):
    • dependent workers: value of 97.6 (sum of age and contribution period) with a minimum age of 61 years and 7 months and a minimum contribution period of 35 years;
    • self-employed: value of 98.6 (sum of age and contribution period) with a minimum age of 62 years and 7 months and a contribution period of 35 years;
  • for night workers on shift work who are employed for 72 to 77 working days per year:
    • dependent workers: value of 98.6 (sum of age and contribution period) with a minimum age of 62 years and 7 months and a minimum contribution period of 35 years;
    • self-employed: value of 99.6 (sum of age and contribution period) with a minimum age of 63 years and 7 months and a contribution period of 35 years;
  • for night workers on shift work who are employed for 64 to 71 working days per year:
    • dependent workers: value of 99.6 (sum of age and contribution period) with a minimum age of 63 years and 7 months and a minimum contribution period of 35 years;
    • self-employed: value of 100.6 (sum of age and contribution period) with a minimum age of 64 years and 7 months and a minimum contribution period of 35 years.

Facilitated conditions for early pension shall not be subject to the life expectancy adjustments provided for the years 2019, 2021, 2023 and 2025.

When can I claim?

The claim must be submitted:

  • before 01 March 2017 if the reduced requirements have been met during the course of 2017;
  • before 01 May of the year preceding the year in which the facilitated requirements were met, where those requirements will have been met after 01 January 2018 (for example: if the requirements will be met in 2018, the claim must be submitted by 01 May 2017).

How can I claim?

In order to obtain early pension with the reduced requirements, the benefit must be recognised for workers engaged in particularly strenuous and heavy work activities.

The claim for access to the benefit and the relevant documentation must be submitted to the  local INPS office in charge.