The Italian authorities have announced that Italian employers made a high number of requests for seasonal foreign workers, exceeding the 82,550 maximum on the first day of the opening.

While the authorities did not reveal the exact number of applications, it was said that significantly more requests were made by Italian employers for foreign workers than allowed.

This suggests that the country is currently dealing with a lack of manpower in various sectors, with agriculture being the most affected,

According to Italy’s organisation for agricultural businesses, Coldiretti, on the first day of applications, which is known as “click day”, requests could be made only for workers in the agriculture, tourism, and hotel sectors.

While there is no division between the sectors that applied for most foreign workers, the regions in which the highest number of entrances were made were those in which manpower is largely needed.

              Even if there is not yet a subdivision at a territorial level, the regions where entry requests are                          concentrated are those that require a large commitment of manpower.

As data show, a high number of requests for foreign workers were made by employers in Trentino, which is known for the apple harvest.

Additionally, employers from Venezia Giulia, known for their production of wine, employers from Lazio, known for the cultivation of vegetables as well as employers from Campania, known for the cultivation of tobacco and tomato, filed a high number of requests for foreign workers, too.

The authorities did not share data on the nationality of workers for which requests were made either. However, Coldiretti said that the highest number of seasonal workers is from Morocco, Albania, Senegal, Pakistan, Tunisia, Nigeria, and North Macedonia.

Coldireti said that foreign workers support many sectors during the peak season. The same stressed that in 2022, foreign workers contributed to the production of one-third “Made in Italy” products.

       Almost 1/3 of Made in Italy at the table at a national level is produced in the fields and stables by           migrants who have regularly found employment in agriculture, providing as many as 32 per cen of        the total working days needed by the sector in 2022.

The country is currently dealing with a labour shortage across various sectors, with occupations such as doctors, nurses, and physiotherapists being in high demand.