International Employment Law Developments

Cross-Border Trends: Mind the Gap

Nicola WhiteleyPosted on February 26, 2016

In the heady days of the Coalition Government, gender pay gap reporting started to get some traction on the political agenda. This led to the 2011 initiative ‘Think, Act, Report’ which encouraged employers to voluntarily publish gender pay gap information. According to a Guardian article in August 2014, citing a parliamentary question from the shadow Equalities Minster at the time, 200 companies signed up to the initiative but only four of those ever published any data. £90,000 of public money later and we were clearly no further on.

International Employment Law Update: Private Emails on Professional Tools are no Longer Private

Editorial BoardPosted on January 29, 2016

In a landmark decision on January 12, 2016, the CEDH (European Court of Human Rights), ruled that employers have the right to read their employees private emails sent during working hours, on condition that this surveillance remains reasonable.

On My Whistle: Are You Up to Speed in the UK with the Financial Conduct Authority’s New Rules on whistleblowing?

Nicola WhiteleyPosted on December 4, 2015

Relevant firms in the UK have until March 7, 2016 to appoint a “whistleblowers’ champion,” who then has until September 7, 2016 to oversee their firm’s readiness for the new whistleblowing regime.

The new whistleblowing regime: why make the change?

Since the 2013 Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards recommendations were published in the UK, the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) has been examining ways to ensure that individuals working in financial services feel able and encouraged to speak up when they have concerns to avoid the same financial scandals of the past.

Orrick World: A Quarterly Report of Global Employment Law Issues for Multinationals

Yumiko Ohta, Andrea Piermartini Rosi, Gary Siniscalco, Michael Weil and Nicola WhiteleyPosted on December 1, 2015

Asia Employment Law Update

Proposed Regulations May Complicate Reductions in Force in China

On December 31st, 2014, Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (“MOHRSS”) issued a notice to solicit public opinions on the draft Regulations on Personnel Cutbacks by Enterprises (“Draft Regulations”). The Draft Regulations set out detailed implementing rules for “mass layoffs” (defined under the Labor Contract Law as being a layoff of more than 10% of the workforce or more than 20 employees) and, if adopted in their current form, will further complicate the process for conducting reductions in force in China.

“Temporary Employees” in Germany need to be Temporary under New Draft Law

André ZimmermannPosted on November 25, 2015

After a long wait the time has finally come: the draft ministerial bill regarding the reform of the German Act on the Supply of Temporary Employees (Arbeitnehmerüberlassungsgesetz – AÜG) is out. On November 16, 2015, the draft bill entered “early coordination,” i.e. a period of coordination with the Office of the Federal Chancellor prior to coordination between the various ministerial departments. The cabinet decision is due by the end of the year. The law is expected to come into effect on January 1, 2017.

International data transfer news… a bit like buses

Nicola Whiteley and André ZimmermannPosted on November 20, 2015

You know how you wait for ages for a bus to come (well, we do in Europe) and then three come along at once? Well it’s a little like that in the data privacy arena right now, as far as transfer of international personal data is concerned, anyhow. For years, there has been a reasonably steady and fairly consistent position from the various bodies responsible for this complicated and often confusing area of law, but in the last few weeks we have been hit with a significant change overnight and we are all left wondering where to get off.

Germany: Act on Collective Bargaining Unity in Force

André ZimmermannPosted on October 29, 2015

In 2010, Germany’s Federal Labor Court (Bundesarbeitsgericht) abolished the principle of collective bargaining unity, commonly referred to as “Tarifeinheit” (“One business, one collective agreement”). As a consequence, since then it has been possible that two different collective bargaining agreements applied for the same group of employees within the same operation. This ruling is supposed to be the major reasons why there have been more strikes in the last couple of months in Germany than ever before.

Where to Draw the Line: HR’s Role in Disciplinary Decisions

Nicola WhiteleyPosted on October 16, 2015

In the recent case of Ramphal v. Department of Transport (DoT) the tricky question of where HR should draw the line in a disciplinary matter between guiding the decision-maker on the right decision, and making that decision for them, was considered. The results weren’t great for the HR manager involved in this case…

Say What You Will About Employment Law in the UK but It Is Never Boring

Nicola WhiteleyPosted on April 27, 2015

Imagine that you have a senior employee who you have decided (for whatever reason) that you do not want anymore but you do not want to pay out his 12-month notice period. As an ingenious attempt to get around that, you instruct forensic investigators to carry out a ‘fishing expedition’ to try and find some dirt on him that will justify you summarily dismissing him, rather than paying out what he is owed under his contract. Imagine that your luck is in and you do indeed find some dirt but that the dirt you find is five year old dirt. Would you think that the High Court is going to accept this approach and agree that you don’t have to pay the notice period?

A Dressing Down – Dress Codes in the Modern Workplace?

Nicola WhiteleyPosted on September 16, 2014

According to research cited by the British Association of Dermatologists, one in five Britons now has a tattoo. Amongst US 30 somethings, the estimate rises to about two in five, with facial piercings being almost as common in both countries. As a result, this is becoming an issue that more and more employers have to grapple with.

Employers may wish to promote a certain image through their employees which they believe reflects the ethos of their organization and tattoos and piercings may well not fit with that image. So how should this be handled and are there any pitfalls of imposing rules of this nature on employees?

Employment Law and Litigation