Dispute over overtime

49 employees threaten Vatican with class action lawsuit

The Holy See is facing a class action lawsuit from dozens of Vatican employees who are demanding better working conditions.(Bild: Stefano Tammaro)

The Holy See is facing a class action lawsuit from 49 Vatican employees. Supervisors in the Vatican Museums, restorers and employees of the bookshop have now written to the Vatican demanding better working conditions. This was reported on Sunday by the Milan daily newspaper "Corriere della Sera".

If they do not receive a response, they are threatening a class action lawsuit, the paper added. The employees complained that overtime at the Vatican is very poorly paid. In addition, there are no support measures in the event of unemployment or times of crisis, such as during the coronavirus pandemic. They turned to the respected lawyer Laura Sgro to assert their concerns.

No air conditioning, too few gendarmes ...
The employees, all Romans, stated, among other things, that "between 25,000 and 30,000 people pass through the Vatican Museums every day, although the maximum number of visitors is 24,000 per day". They also complained that the rooms in the Vatican Museums had no air conditioning and complained about the low number of gendarmes, which created problems for the guards, who were sometimes attacked by harassing visitors.

"The Pope talks about rights, but we are seen as mere commodities," the employees complained. The management of the Vatican Museums has not yet responded to the complaints.

Of around 4800 employees, more than half work for the Holy See, i.e. in the authorities, media or embassies of the world church administration. The others are employees of the 44-hectare Vatican State: gardeners, supermarket and post office staff, museum guards and cleaners. 

36-hour week, no income tax
A full-time working week at the Vatican lasts 36 hours. Every two years there is a seniority bonus and an inflation adjustment - if the Pope does not freeze these as he did in 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic. The deduction for pension and health insurance is around ten percent of the gross salary. No income tax is levied.