A comprehensive obligation to provide proof of vaccination for all employees is expected to lead to final success over Corona in Italy - but at the same time, the regulation is provoking protests, some of them fierce. From this Friday, all employees in the private and public sectors will have to prove that they have been vaccinated, have recovered or have tested negative. Only then will they be allowed to enter their workplace with a so-called "green passport," for example in offices, factories, stores, public institutions or in the service industry.

Around 23 million employees are affected by the decree law. Infections at work and collective quarantine should thus be avoided. "For companies and employees, the Green Pass increases safety at work and guarantees production," Maurizio Stirpe, vice president of the employers' organization Confindustria, told the German Press Agency.

In some sectors, the Covid pass was already compulsory, for example in schools or in the medical sector. Now Prime Minister Mario Draghi is taking the entire working world to task. Those who do not have a passport will have to stay at home and will no longer receive a salary in their absence.

Last Saturday, thousands of people demonstrated in Rome against the "Green Passport", including riots, clashes with police and injuries. This Friday, another demonstration is planned in the capital. Workers in Trieste, northern Italy, announced they would blockade the important Adriatic port. "The government must not allow itself to be blackmailed," demands businessman Stirpe.

Chaos threatens in freight traffic because many long-distance drivers, especially from other Eastern European countries, do not have a Corona certificate - also because their vaccinations are not recognized, for example with Sputnik. According to media reports, there is now to be a short-term exemption for precisely those foreign truck drivers. This in turn angered the Italian transport association Unatras, which spoke of an "embarrassing" process and distortion of competition.

Politicians, especially from the right and center-right, are scolding Draghi's decree. Because coronatests for unvaccinated adults will no longer be free in the future, but will cost 15 euros, they criticized that people would now have to pay to go to work. Tests must be renewed every 48 hours. Those who come to work without proof risk up to 1500 euros in fines. Those who stay away from work because they cannot show the document face unpaid time off. Companies that fail to check the Covid certificate on their employees will be fined up to 1000 euros.

The Covid 19 vaccination argue members of the government. This is exactly what Draghi is after: he wants to use the proof requirement to get those people to vaccinate who have so far refused. 85 percent of Italians over the age of twelve have been vaccinated at least once.

In Italy, the seven-day incidence fell from around 75 at the end of August to around 30 now - with a clear downward trend. By way of comparison, at the end of August, around 80 new infections per 100,000 inhabitants were also reported for Germany within one week. Now the incidence is around 69 - with a slight upward trend. Due to the satisfactory development in Italy, discotheques have been allowed to open again since Monday, and the rows in cinemas and theaters can be fully occupied again. The prerequisite for admission is always the "Green Pass".