The eyebrow-raising decision comes after vehicle manufacturer Fiat sacked a worker in 2008 for watching an adult film on his personal laptop in an electricity supply room on the factory floor.
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Workers should not be sacked for watching porn during their lunch break, Italy’s highest court has ruled.
The judicial process got underway in 2010, when a court in Termini Imerese initially found the man guilty.
Workers have been given the green light to watch porn films on their breaks after a court rules in favour of man who enjoyed an X-rated movie at lunchtime.
They were later awarded compensation from employer Conoco Phillips for unfair dismissal, after the matter had been through local, appeal and Supreme Court hearings.
“The evidence was insufficient to prove that the employee viewed porn during his working hours”, the Court Cassation said in its ruling on Wednesday.
So, you just tell that to your boss when he or she catches you watching porn at work.
However, Palermo’s court of appeal later overturned the verdict – and its ruling was this week upheld by the Court of Cassation.
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However, the court did decide that Fiat was quite within its rights to issue marching orders to another employee “caught smoking joints during working hours”.
