RdC phase-out won't set off 'social bomb' - Calderone

(ANSA) - ROME, AUG 30 - Labour Minister Marina Calderone said Wednesday that there is no danger that the government's phasing out of the citizenship wage (RdC) minimum-income benefit will set off a "social bomb".
    Some 159,000 families in Italy were told by text message that their RdC was being cut last month, sparking concern about what will happen to the people losing their welfare cheques amid confusion about the benefits that will replace the citizenship wage.
    The government, which says the RdC took away people's incentive to find work and was too susceptible to fraud, has since clarified the situation.
    People considered fit for work will be able to present a claim to social-security agency INPS for the Labour Formation Support (SFL) benefit, which is dependent on them having enrolled on a training programme to help them re-enter the labour market.
    Households in which there are minors, disabled people or people over 60 will be able to keep receiving the RdC until the end of the year and then claim a new benefit, the inclusion cheque (ADI), worth a maximum of 500 euros a month per individual.
    The SFL benefit will be worth up to 350 euros a month, payable for a maximum of 12 months.
    "Are we on the verge of a social bomb? Absolutely not," Calderone said at the presentation of the SIISL IT platform, which will be active from September 1 for former RdC claimants to apply for the SFL.
    "The figures tell us that the situation is absolutely manageable". (ANSA).