Over 408 euros more per month, with a peak of 464.49 euros for employees of the central functions. This is the data that brings attention back to state salaries and the long season of contract renewals in the public administration.
The figure, however, must be read correctly. It doesn’t mean that all public employees will suddenly find 408 euros more in their next paycheck. It is the result of the sum of the average increases produced by multiple collective agreements, relating to the three-year periods 2019-2021, 2022-2024 and 2025-2027. A part of the increases has therefore already been recognised, another has been brought forward through the contractual holiday allowance and yet another depends on the conclusion of the ongoing negotiations.
Furthermore, the amounts are gross, generally refer to thirteen months’ salary and change depending on the sector, qualification, seniority and any allowances. The net amount actually visible on the payslip will be lower and will depend on the Irpef rate and the additional taxes applied to the individual worker.
Central functions, overall increases of up to 464 euros
The workers in central functions benefit from the highest cumulative increases: just over 200 thousand employees mainly employed in ministries, tax agencies and national public bodies.
The contract relating to the three-year period 2019-2021 had produced an average monthly increase of 131.42 euros. Added to this were the 165.85 euros of the 2022-2024 renewal and the average 167.21 euros foreseen by the 2025-2027 contract. Summing the three contractual cycles we arrive at 464.49 euros gross per month, equivalent to a nominal growth close to 17 percent.
However, an important clarification is necessary: as of 20 July 2026, that of the central functions for the three-year period 2025-2027 is still formally acontract hypothesissigned by Aran and the unions on 9 June. Before all the provisions can be applied the control process must be completed and the final signature received.
Once fully operational, from January 1, 2027, the monthly tabular increases provided for by the new agreement are:
- 221 euros for high professionalism;
- 161.80 euros for officials;
- 133.20 euros for assistants;
- 126.60 euros for operators.
The figures are gross and are paid for thirteen months. The contract provides for three effective dates: a first installment from 1 January 2025, a second from 1 January 2026 and the full amount from 1 January 2027.
How ministerial salaries change
The comparison with the previous renewal helps to understand why the cumulative increases have become so significant. The 2022-2024 contract had already recognized monthly tabular increases of:
- 193.90 euros to High professionalism;
- 155.10 euros to officials;
- 127.70 euros to assistants;
- 121.40 euros to operators.
These amounts were also gross and distributed over thirteen months. The close overlap of two renewals, to which is added the one signed in 2022 for the three-year period 2019-2021, explains the jump recorded in central administration salaries.
This does not mean, however, that an official should automatically add all the figures in the tables and expect the entire result on the next payslip. The increases indicate the growth compared to the previous table values, while the advances already paid are absorbed by the new contract. Any arrears will also be calculated by subtracting what has already been received in the form of contractual holiday allowance.
The Education and Research sector also recovered a significant part of the contractual delays. On July 1, 2026, the 2025-2027 economic contract was definitively signed, which affects approximately 1.2 million workers between schools, universities, research and Afam institutions.
According to Aran, by adding the increases of the three consecutive renewals, the average structural increase reaches 395 euros gross per month for the entire sector and goes up to 412 euros for teaching staff. The 2025-2027 contract alone guarantees, when fully operational from 1 January 2027, an average of 137 euros per month, which becomes 143 euros for teachers.
In this case the economic agreement is already definitive. The increases are distributed in three tranches starting from 2025, 2026 and 2027. Arrears are also foreseen: those calculated until 30 June 2026 fluctuate approximately between 815 and 1,250 euros, based on the professional category. The discussion on the regulatory part of the contract, however, continues.
Healthcare, the new increase is still to be negotiated
The situation is different in public health. The 2022-2024 contract, definitively signed in October 2025, recognized an average increase of 172 euros per month for over 580 thousand employees. The 2025-2027 renewal, however, is still under negotiation.
The negotiation has entered the economic part and the new meeting between Aran and the unions is set for July 22nd. On the table there are not only the table salaries, but also allowances, shifts, meal vouchers, assignments and other elements that affect the final salary.
The simulations circulated so far indicate a possible average increase of approximately 145.63 euros gross per month for the new three-year period. For nurses, the sum of the different contracts could bring the cumulative increase close to 419 euros. However, they are still theoretical amounts: until the agreement is reached and signed, they cannot be considered definitively acquired increases.
Local authorities, the gap with ministries
For employees of Municipalities, Provinces, Regions and other territorial bodies, the 2022-2024 contract definitively entered into force in February 2026. It produced an average increase of close to 140 euros per month, considering the standard salary and resources allocated to ancillary treatment.
The comparison over the three-year period 2025-2027 has yet to be completed. Estimates indicate a further average increase of approximately 137.56 euros per month. Adding the 118 euros of the 2019-2021 contract and the approximately 141 euros of the subsequent renewal, the employees of the local functions have so far accumulated approximately 259 euros per month; the new agreement could bring the total close to 397 euros.
A distance therefore remains with respect to the central functions. In recent years the government has intervened several times on ministerial administration allowances and ancillary resources, making some central administrations more economically attractive than local authorities.
Law enforcement and military forces, increases for around 430 thousand workers
In the Security and Defense sector, which includes approximately 430 thousand members of the Armed Forces and police, the latest renewals produce an overall increase estimated at around 2,600 euros gross per year.
For the three-year period 2025-2027 the average increase indicated is approximately 188 euros per monthbut even in this case the final figures change based on the rank, the administration to which they belong and the operational allowances.
When the pay rises actually arrive
To understand when the increases will be visible, three situations must be distinguished.
Where the contract has been definitively signed, as in Education and Research, the administrations can proceed with the adjustment of payslips and the payment of arrears. Where only a hypothesis has been signed, as for central functions, checks and final signature must be awaited. In the sectors in which negotiations are still open, such as Healthcare and Local Functions for the three-year period 2025-2027, the amounts remain forecasts.
The arrears will not correspond to the simple multiplication of the full increase by all the months that have passed. The advances already paid will be subtracted from the calculation and the different amounts will start from the dates established in each contract.
Who earns more
In the cumulative comparison they are therefore the Central functions to record the highest increase, with an average monthly gross of 464.49 euros resulting from three renewals. They follow the Healthcareat least in the projections that include the contract still to be negotiated, and the schoolwhere the structural increases reach 395 euros on average and 412 euros for teachers.
The 408 euro figure therefore shows a real growth in public salaries, but not an identical increase for everyone. To know how much your paycheck will really change, you need to look at your sector, your qualification and the status of the relevant negotiation.
The most important difference is precisely this: some workers are already receiving the effects of the renewals, others are waiting for the arrears and others still see, for now, only figures written on the negotiating tables.
