The MEP Ilaria Salis is at the center of a complex legal case concerning her relationship with two of her former collaborators. The Court of Milan – Labor section – has in fact established that the dismissals ordered against them were without just cause, condemning the parliamentarian to pay compensation exceeding 300 thousand euros. The decision, signed by judge Franco Caroleo, came after proceedings in which Salis never appeared, a circumstance that led to her being declared in default.
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Failure to notify and default
According to what was reconstructed in the documents, the two collaborators had unsuccessfully attempted to notify the appeal to the MEP’s official residential address. The absence of a valid domicile contributed to the non-participation in the process, an element that weighed in the court’s evaluation.
The election and the collaborators’ contracts
The story has its roots in the period following Salis’s election to the European Parliament, which took place in June 2024 with Alleanza Verdi e Sinistra, after her detention in Hungary for the assault on far-right militants during the “Day of Honour”. The two collaborators had contributed to the election campaign and, once hired, had obtained contracts with an expiry date set at the end of the mandate, in July 2029. The planned duties ranged from designing political initiatives to managing events, up to supporting institutional relations. The monthly salaries were 2,900 and 3,000 euros.
The breakdown of the professional relationship
The professional relationship, however, deteriorated rapidly. One of the two assistants received an early termination motivated by the breakdown of the trust relationship, defined as a situation of personal and environmental incompatibility. The other collaborator, on the other hand, was notified of an immediate dismissal, justified by alleged dissatisfaction with the quality of the work performed. No attempt at conciliation was initiated by Salis, according to the judgment.
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The judge’s reasons
The judge recalled that it is up to the employer to prove the existence of just cause. The MEP’s default prevented any production of evidence to support the terminations, leading the court to declare their non-existence. Hence the conviction: 300,900 euros for lost earnings until the end of the mandate and an additional 10 thousand euros for legal fees.
Ilaria Salis’s response
Salis, through a note, expressed her opposition to the decision and announced that she had already filed an appeal. “I fully dispute the judgment,” she declared, “and I trust that the next instance can correctly reconstruct the facts.” The MEP then explained the reasons that, in her opinion, had made the termination of employment relationships inevitable: “The choice was neither arbitrary nor sudden. It was necessary to ensure the correct performance of my mandate, the protection of public resources and the people I represent.”
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