Toscana Notizie – Flash Lavoro n. 63/2025

THE OVERVIEW

In Italy, in the fourth quarter of 2024, ‘labour input, measured by hours worked, increased by 0.2% compared to the previous quarter and by 0.5% compared to the fourth quarter of 2023. In the same period, GDP grew by 0.1% in economic terms and by 0.6% in trend terms.’
In Tuscany, labour demand, as expressed by start-ups, showed a positive change in the fourth quarter of 2023 after two negative quarters. However, this result is determined by agriculture and public services, essentially schools. For the private non-agricultural sectors as a whole, the result is once again negative. The decline in hiring is widespread across sectors but much more intense in industry (-5.3% in the quarter, -9.4% in the year). Within manufacturing, the decline in hiring is most intense in the fashion sector (-7.6% in the quarter, -14.4% in the year). A further sign of the unfavourable economic situation for the manufacturing sector is the significant increase in authorised ordinary CIG hours during the year, which almost doubled compared to 2023. Here too, the fashion sector stands out, with hours rising from 4 million to 11 million, almost tripling.
The number of employees is still growing, albeit at a steadily declining rate, from +3.0% in the first quarter to +2.0% in the fourth, driven by permanent employment. The number of apprentices and fixed-term contracts is falling, while the number of temporary workers and collaborators is increasing.
Among the various sectors, manufacturing recorded the smallest change and, within this sector, Made in Italy entered negative territory, with all fashion-related manufacturing in decline, with the sole exception of clothing manufacturing. Metalworking, which includes the production of fashion accessories, also saw a decrease in the number of employees. In other sectors, the most significant increases were in the pharmaceutical industry, the manufacture of transport equipment and the manufacture of mechanical and electrical machinery. In the service sector, tourism services showed above-average growth, as did the advanced service sector.
The number of unemployed estimated by ISTAT is 20,000 lower than in the fourth quarter of 2023, and the unemployment rate has fallen from 5.2% to 4.0%. The employment rate among 15- to 64-year-olds is on the rise for both women and men.

Closer look
STRUCTURAL CHANGES IN AGRICULTURAL WORK IN THE PROVINCES OF TUSCANY

By Sara Turchetti

As already highlighted in other IRPET studies, the agricultural sector has gradually reduced its importance in the overall economy in all Italian regions, as is normal in a context of tertiarisation. The gradual decline in family labour, and therefore in the possibility of ensuring a certain degree of continuity for the business, has contributed to the decline of agricultural activity. In some cases, and especially in certain areas and sectors, this has led to an increase in the demand for agricultural labour and contributed to the process of gradual professionalisation in some specific sectors. The aim of this supplement is to highlight the main differences at the provincial level, starting from the most general evidence and using mainly the most recent Agricultural Censuses as data sources.