The construction brokerage market - Italy

1.1 Definition and scope of study

 Work brokerage consists of the intermediation between a client (individual or company) with a work project and professionals capable of carrying out the work. The objective of a work broker is to find the craftsmen and material suppliers with the best quality/price ratio for their customers. The work brokerage market is strongly linked to the construction market (building and public work) which includes all the activities of building design and construction public and private, but also to refurbishment. The dynamism of the construction sector and the construction/renovation sector in general encourages the evolution of the contraction brokerage market. 

Within the Italian market, the intermediation between demand and supply for work usually refers to a service offered to operators in the labor market. In modern times and up to recent years, the work brokerage services have been characterized by their public nature (under a monopoly regime) and free of charge, especially in favor of employees. This is because of the common social feeling about the moral contempt of the realities in which there were those who profited from the provision of labor in favor of those who needed it. Although the rule of gratuitousness still holds (but only in favor of employees), in recent years we have seen the overcoming of the monopoly of public employment and a gradual opening of mediation services to qualified private individuals.

In addition, in recent times we have also seen the establishment of online platforms aimed at linking together demand and supply for work. Therefore, thanks to the technological devices we can count on and to the digitalization of the labor market, the work brokerage services can even be carried out online, facilitating the combination of demand and supply. Such platforms are usually referred to as online talent platforms.