The earthquake as worksite: emergency rule, contracting, and labor control in Fascist Italy (1933–1936)

This paper examines the reconstruction that followed the Majella earthquake of 26 September 1933 in Italy to explore how natural disasters can reshape labor relations under authoritarian regimes. Drawing on archival sources from central and local institutions, including ministerial records and the documentation of the Civil Engineering Department, the study analyzes the organization of reconstruction sites in Abruzzo during the Fascist period. The article argues that post-earthquake reconstruction functioned not only as a technical response to destruction but also as a mechanism of labor governance. Through the centralization of authority within the Ministry of Public Works, strict deadlines, and systems of piecework and subcontracting, the Fascist state intensified work rhythms while compressing wages and fragmenting employment relations. To interpret these dynamics, the article introduces the concept of an Emergency Labor Regime (ELR), understood as a configuration in which extraordinary legislation, accelerated temporal frameworks, and administrative control enable the reorganization of labor during crises. The Majella case shows how disaster reconstruction could serve as a political and economic instrument for regulating labor within an authoritarian political economy.