THE NEW ASPECT OF THE OCCUPATIONAL WELFARE SYSTEM IN ITALIAN SMES.

Occupational welfare (OW) has gained an increasingly important value due to the crisis of public systems and the triumph of neoliberal doctrines. Public discussions in Italy have changed since the early 1990s, advocating for a stronger focus on private solutions, such as OW. Specifically, a move toward a multi-pillar system has been demanded, shifting welfare from primarily the state to various players, such as employers, social partners, and private citizens. The dissertation intends to analyze the role of the OW model in Italian SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises). In particular, four dimensions of OW are taken into account: integrative pension system, complementary healthcare, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), and digitalization. The research concentrates on SMEs since they constitute a significant portion of the Italian economy and account for most of the employment, the majority of gross value added (GVA), and nearly all firms that are currently in operation. In particular, the work aims to examine to what extent and how OW tools affect the lives of the employees of the SMEs under investigation. The dissertation aims, through a collection of the main studies in literature, to compose a detailed picture of the OW tools made available for SMEs to offer welfare services to their employees. Furthermore, it is necessary to specify that the study focuses its attention exclusively on the point of view of employees, which represents a strong point of the research since most of the literature on welfare focuses its attention on the governing bodies of companies. In this vein, a valuable critical analysis will be carried out focusing on the mechanisms that led the workers of the SMEs to use these tools for social protection. This objective is enriched by an additional aspect: “special” SMEs. They are considered “special” because they are attentive to the quality of their employees’ lives, and are part of two databases: Welfare Index PMI and Great Place to Work. Even though these Italian SMEs are unique, this study could be useful in considering managerial and political implications of SMEs, to also develop a positive path for the implementation of OW in other organizations. To achieve its purpose, the thesis presents and discusses a study on the role of OW within thirty SMEs, through a content analysis of 90 semi-structured interviews conducted with three employees from each company under examination. The results of the analysis highlight a partial interest of the workers in OW, especially in terms of healthcare and CSR. Furthermore, it is also possible to note how the role of the measures adopted by the “special” SMEs to address innovation in OW services is a central component of their sustainable performance.