Govt may amend Renzi's Jobs Act

(ANSA) - Rome, September 30 - Premier Matteo Renzi's government may present an amendment to its controversial Jobs Act labour reform on the basis of a document approved Monday at a heated meeting of his centre-left Democratic Party (PD), the PD's Senate whip Luigi Zanda told a party meeting Tuesday, according to ANSA sources. A minority within the PD is alarmed at changes to Article 18 of the 1970 Workers Statute, which protects staff from unjust dismissal. Renzi appears to have given some ground to the rebels who have vowed to fight the reform. Initially, the Jobs Act said that the Article 18 guarantee for people unjustly dismissed to have their jobs back would no longer apply to newly hired workers - while remaining in force for people already in jobs - except in cases of discrimination. But the document approved by the PD on Monday said that the guarantee should also apply in cases when a worker is dismissed on disciplinary grounds that a court rules are unfounded.