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EMPLOYMENT LAW BRIEFING 2015An Update on Key Labor and Employment Law Developments Around the Globe
*This presentation is offered for informational purposes only, and the content should not be construed as legal advice on any matter
Agenda
Asia Pacific
Europe
Middle East/Africa
Americas
2January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
ASIA PACIFIC
3
APAC agenda
China – New labor dispatch regulations; injuries outside workplace deemed work-related injuries; new work safety rules
Japan – New workplace harassment rules; fixed overtime allowance
South Korea – Bonus ≠ ordinary wages; new OSHA regulations; new sexual harassment training requirement; non-discrimination based on education; miscellaneous legal updates
Hong Kong – New Companies Ordinance; new paid paternity leave
Singapore – Protection from Harassment Act; Personal Data Protection Act; changes to Employment Act; new Fair Consideration Framework; amended Workplace Safety and Health Regulations
India – Sexual Harassment Act; miscellaneous legal updates
Australia – Workplace bullying law; new privacy principles; miscellaneous legal updates
4
China – new LABOR DISPATCH REGULATIONS
Took effect 3/1/2014
Background: Law limiting dispatch workers (effective 7/1/2013) Key provisions in the new regulations:
10% Cap – Comply by March 2016 (2-year grace period) Consultation process required for setting up new auxiliary positions
Minimum terms in the labor dispatch agreement
Expanded circumstances under which dispatch worker may be returned
Circumstances under which dispatch worker may not be returned
Rep Office not subject to labor dispatch limitations
Can still use dispatch agencies (FESCO/CIIC etc.) for HR services (payroll, social insurance contribution, etc.)
Take aways:
For new hires going forward, employ directly
For current staff, convert5January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
China – Supreme Court: Injuries outside the workplace
Supreme Court: Injuries outside the workplace could be deemed work-relatedOutside the workplace for a work-related reason
Reasonable route and reasonable time between work and home
Exceptions
Why important?
6January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
China – new work safety rules
Took effect 8/31/2014
Higher penalties for production safety breach in the workplace Up to RMB 20 million (USD 3 million)
Potential criminal liability if a very serious safety breach
Person in charge of production safety can be penalized: Demoted/removed
Salary reduction by 60-100%
Not permitted to take charge of production safety again for any employer within the same industry
Take away: Ensure compliance
7January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Japan – new workplace harassment rules
Took effect 7/1/2014; amends Equal Employment Opportunity Act for Men and Women
Goal: Ensure more rigorous enforcement of Japan’s guidelines on workplace harassment
Highlights:
Requiring employee to agree to relocate at hiring or promotion, without reasonable explanation, could constitute indirect gender discrimination
Discrimination based on marital status is a type of gender discrimination
Recognizes sexual harassment between employees of the same gender
Supreme Court (Oct. 2014): Recognized maternity harassment for the first time, holding that demoting or dismissing a pregnant woman was invalid and illegal
Take away: Implement or update your policy
8January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Japan – Judicial Guidance re: fixed overtime allowance
Applies to employers that have a fixed overtime allowance scheme
According to Supreme Court and subsequent Tokyo District Courts’ decisions, employment contracts or work rules should:
Set out exact monetary amount of the fixed overtime allowance
Include a maximum number of hours of premiums for Overtime; and/or Work between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m.; and/or Work on the prescribed rest day
State that LSA (Labor Standards Act) premiums will be separately paid for overtime worked in excess of hours covered by the allowance
Restrictions on working more than 5 hrs/day, 45 hrs/month, 360 hrs/year
Take away:
Make sure your scheme complies;
Monitor employees’ hours and pay them separately for hours in excess of the scheme
9January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Japan – on the horizon: dispatch workers
New law on dispatch Arrangement anticipated in 2015 Abandons distinction between 26 specialized jobs and other
occupations 3 year time limitation for all dispatch arrangements (with some
exceptions)
10January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
South Korea – Supreme Court: Certain bonus ≠ ordinary wage
Supreme Court ruling in Kabul Autotech (December 2013) Fixed bonus = ordinary wage “Good faith and trust” defense
Subsequent lower court rulings: Fixed bonus paid only to incumbent employees ≠ ordinary wage
Supreme Court ruling (June 2014): “Incumbent employee” requirement can be established through implied consent or customary practice HOWEVER, Busan District Court (Oct. 2014): “Incumbent employee”
requirement established through practice is not good enough Standard for “good faith and trust” defense is not settled Supreme Court ruling (May 2014): No need to show concrete financial
figures Seoul Central District Court (May 2014): Evidence needed to show
financial burden Take away: Bonus will continue to be a hot-button issue
January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015 11
South Korea – New OSHA regulations
Took effect March 2014, specific obligations effective 3/3/2014, 9/13/2014 and 9/13/2015
Expand the scope of companies required to: Implement a “Process Safety Management
System”;
Submit a “Harm/Danger Prevention Plan”;
Appoint a Chief Safety & Health Manager;
Provide safety & health information to sub-contractors
Take Away: Ensure compliance
12January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
South Korea – sexual harassment training
Effective 1/14/2014, high level management are required to go through sexual harassment training E.g., personnel classified as “employers,” such as executives and
managers
Training at least once a year
Take Away: Schedule your training!Other employees already required to do training once a year
13January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
South Korea – No discrimination based on education
Effective 7/22/2014, educational background cannot be ground for discrimination
Expressly prohibited by Basic Employment Policy Act
The Act does not define any particular types of activities; clarification expected later in specific regulations and guidelines
Previously, the National Human Rights Committee ruled that certain hiring practices = discrimination based on education
Alleged victim could file a petition to National Human Rights Committee (NHRC) NHRC could issue a corrective order if discrimination is found
Take Away: Implement or update your policy
14January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
South Korea – Miscellaneous
Amendments to the Labor Standards Act took effect on 3/24/2014
Amendments to the Dispatched Workers’ Act took effect on 9/19/2014
Amendments to the Fixed-Term Act took effect on 9/19/2014
Fair Hiring Act to take effect in phases from 2015 to 2017
Effective 1/14/2014, childcare leave expanded from “pre-schoolers aged 6 or below” to children “8 years in age or younger, or a second grade or lower at elementary school”
Take Away: Implement or update your policies/practices re:
Pregnant employees
Dispatch workers
Overtime pay for part-time workers
Record-keeping re documents submitted by job applicants
Childcare leave15January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Hong Kong – New developments
New Companies Ordinance took effect 3/1/2014
Implications for employment law: provisions for a court-free regime for
amalgamations (i.e., more companies merge) restriction on companies entering into any
service or employment contract with a director for a guaranteed period that exceeds three years the standard of directors’ duty of care, skill
and diligence
Paid statutory paternity leave effective February 2015
3 days at 80% pay
16January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Singapore – Protection From Harassment Act 2014
Took effect 11/15/2014
Not limited to workplace harassment
Broad scope, including Cyber bullying
Stalking
False statements
Criminal sanctions available, including fines, community orders, protection orders and imprisonment
Extra-territorial reach
Unclear whether vicarious liability for employer
Take away: Implement or update your policy to mimic the law’s broad scope
17January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Singapore – Personal Data Protection Act
Took effect 7/2/2014
Applies to anyone carrying on a business in Singapore, whether incorporated or resident in Singapore
Organizations must: Appoint at least one person as a Data Protection Officer and ensure their details are made publicly
available
Secure individuals' consent to the collection and retention of their personal data (except where required by law)
Ensure the accuracy of the data, with appropriate consideration given to the nature of the data and the significance it has for the individual;
Provide access for individuals to establish what data an organization holds on them as well as providing mechanisms to correct any inaccuracies both within the organization and within any third party to which it has disclosed the inaccurate data
Put in place appropriate security measures to prevent any unauthorized access to personal data. Security should be reviewed at intervals to determine whether security measures continue to be appropriate
Ensure that any recipient outside of Singapore to whom data is transferred is legally obliged to provide data protection comparable to that in the PDPA
Non-compliance with these provisions may result in severe financial penalties for the organization of up to SGD 1 million (approx. USD 750,000) imposed by the PDPC
18January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Singapore – Changes To The Employment Act
Effective 4/1/2014 Highlights: Better protections for more workers (Part
IV EA protection now for salaries up toS $2,500; general EA protection now up to S $4,500)
Improved employment standards and benefits
Enhanced enforcement and compliance with employment standards
Some flexibility for employers
Take away: Address relevant information in policies and contracts
19January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Singapore – New fair consideration framework
As of 8/1/2014, all firms submitting Employment Pass (EP) applications for foreigners to work in Singapore are required to advertise these jobs to locals
Exemptions
Jobs in companies with fewer than 25 employees
Jobs that pay a fixed monthly salary of S$12,000 and above
Jobs filled by Intra-Corporate Transferees (ICTs)
Short-term jobs for not more than 1 month
Take aways:
Before hiring, review job descriptions/requirements to ensure that they do not discriminate against locals
Advertise non-exempt positions to locals
20January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Singapore – Workplace safety and health regulations amended
Took effect on 1/6/2014
Highlights: Increase in the protection of workers by
changing the trigger requirements for the reporting of accidents
Increase in the scope of accidents that must be reported
Take away: Implement or update policies
21January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
India – Sexual Harassment Act
Sexual Harassment Act became effective in December 2013
Employer obligations under the Sexual Harassment Act Formulate an internal policy
Set up an internal complaints committee (if 10 or more employees)
Conduct training
Recent Delhi High Court judgment held that forfeiture of gratuity would be justified if dismissal is on account of sexual harassment (P K Kataria v. Chairman & Managing Director, National Fertilizers Limited, [2014 LLR 6 ])
Take away: Adopt appropriate policies and measures, if not already in place
22January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
India – Miscellaneous developments
Labor Laws Amendment Bill 2011 passed on 11/26/2014
Apprentices Amendment Bill 2014 passed on 11/26/2014
Delhi High Court: Employee secondment may trigger permanent establishment
Changes re: EPF (Employees’ Provident Fund)Wage ceiling raised: Employers have to make contributions for a
larger workforce and to make higher contributions
Submission of employees’ bank account details mandatory
Expats may get PF withdrawals directly in a bank account outside India
23January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Australia – New workplace bullying law
New workplace bullying laws took effect on 1/1/2014 Under new laws, workers can bring bullying
claims to the Fair Work Commission Lessons from existing rulings Employers should take disciplinary actions
promptly Employers should train frontline managers to
respond appropriately to bullying complaintsWorkplace bullying could occur over a very
short period of time Take aways:Make sure you have a good anti-bullying policyMake sure your managers are trained and
comply with policy24January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Australia – New privacy principles
Effective 3/12/2014, employers must observe strict requirements of handling employee-related information
Employers should:
Use caution when collecting personal information from contractors and job candidates
Use caution when a group company collects personal information
Destroy collected information if the purpose is complete (but be cautious in case of possible litigation)
Conduct privacy training sessions for relevant employees
Consequences for non-compliance
Investigation by the Privacy Commissioner
Up to $1.7 million of penalty for company
Up to $340,000 of penalty for individuals
Take away: Implement or update your privacy policies
25January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Australia – Miscellaneous developments
Supreme Court: No implied term of “mutual trust and confidence” in employment contracts (Commonwealth Bank of Australia v. Barker)
Fair Work Commission: Excessive delay in employer’s investigation lead to unfair dismissal ruling; employee was reinstated
New gender equality reporting obligations to take effect in April 2015
New Employee Share Schemes Tax rules to take effect on 7/1/2015
Federal government will set up a separate tax regime for start-up entities
26January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
EUROPE
27
Europe agenda
UK – Holiday pay issues, reform of family-friendly rights and current challenges with mass layoffs and business transfers
Belgium – Overhaul to employment laws
France – New redundancy rules, working time challenges
Germany – Introduction of a minimum wage and family friendly rights
Italy – Upcoming changes to laws in Italy
Netherlands – Changes to the laws relating to fixed term workers and dismissals
Round up of Europe-wide developments – Data protection, definition of trade secrets, gender imbalance on company boards
28January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
UK and Europe – Holiday pay
European directive derived right in each Member State, both to take holiday and be paid for it
Calculating appropriate rates of pay now more complex following recent European cases. These will determine the extent employers must include various elements of pay
European Courts held that both overtime and commissions (if linked to the work the employee is required to do) must be included in holiday pay calculations. Question of whether bonuses should be remains open
29January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
UK and Europe – Holiday pay
Concern in the UK: Risk of retrospective claims for underpaid holiday
November 2014: UK Employment Appeal Tribunal suggested claims would be barred if there was a gap of more than 3 months between any alleged failure to pay holiday in line with the correct calculation
December 2014: draft legislation was proposed to limit back pay to a maximum of 2 years. If implemented, limit will apply to claims brought on or after 7/1/2015
Key decision of Lock v British Gas Trading is expected in February 2015
30January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
UK – Family friendly developments
Flexible working Since 6/30/2014 all employees with six
months’ service can request flexible working
Simplified procedure
Shared Parental Leave For children due from 4/5/2015, working
couples can share 50 weeks’ leave and 37 weeks’ pay
Employees can request to take leave in blocks of a week and couples can take leave at the same time
Complex regulations will be difficult to administer
31January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
UK – Flexible working
32January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
UK – Shared parental leave
Previously Additional Paternity Leave (APL) existed since April
2011. Fathers (or partners of adopters) entitled to take up to 26 weeks' APL between 20 weeks and 12 months after birth/adoption
The mother (or adopter) must have returned to work. The employee must have provided appropriate written evidence, including from the mother (or adopter)
New Regime Came into force on 12/1/2014 for employees whose
expected week of childbirth is on or after 4/5/2015
52 weeks’ maternity leave and 2 weeks’ paternity leave remains default position. Additional paternity leave abolished. New entitlement to shared parental leave
33January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
UK – Mass layoffs
European Directive on mass dismissals implemented by UK
Collective consultation needed where 20 or more employees at one establishment to be made redundant in a 90 day period. 30 days or 45 days, subject to numbers. Award of up to 90 days' pay for failure
Recent cases have caused problems for employers with multiple operations/sites in the UK (Woolworths). Currently need to aggregate all redundancies across the country
Case appealed to the European Court of Justice. Advocate General’s opinion is expected 2/5/2015
34January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Significant changes to employment laws in Belgium
Background Harmonize the difference in treatment between
white-collar employees and blue-collar employees
July 2011: Belgian Court held that difference intreatment was unconstitutional. Law setting out thenew rules came into force in January 2014 (withtransitional provisions)
What’s New? Harmonized Notice Periods
For both blue and white collar workers, notice must now calculated based on length of service
Termination of Fixed-Term or Specific Task Contracts
Now possible to terminate fixed-term or specific term contracts before their expiry without incurring significant financial liabilities
35January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Significant changes to employment laws in Belgium
No Trial Periods No longer possible to agree a trial period in an employment contract, except in limited cases
Sick Leave ChangesCarensday (or Carensdag/Jour de Carence), that is, the first day of sick leave (which was unpaid for blue collar workers), abolished
Right to Outplacement Services ExtendedNew right to take leave during notice period to search for employment; existing right to use outplacement extended
New Obligation to Explain Dismissal ReasonsSince April 2014, all employers must explain reasons for dismissal when requested by employee
36January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
New redundancy rules in France
Florange lawSince 4/1/2014, employer intending to shut down a site must try to find a buyer before the closure (and the associated redundancy measures)
Practical Implications Law applies to: (i) companies employing at least
1,000 employees in France and/or Europe; and (ii) companies or groups of companies meeting the legal requirements for a EWC or a Group Committee
No legal obligation to find a purchaser, but companies have to inform potential buyers of their intention to sell; provide specific information to potential buyers; consider purchase offers; provide a motivated response to any purchase offers; inform the Works Council of the offers and the reasons for refusal
37January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
New rules in France
Hamon lawAs of 11/1/2014, in case of contemplated sale (share deal or asset deal) of certain companies (employing fewer than 250 employees and whose turnover does not exceed specific thresholds), employer has obligation to inform the employees in advance, in the event they would be interested in buying the company
Practical Implications Employees must be informed at least 2 months
before the contemplated sale
Sale can occur before the 2-month period if all employees inform employer that they are not interested in buying the company
In case of non-compliance cancellation of sale
38January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Working time challenges in France –SYNTEC CBA
Ban on emails being sent by French employees after 6 p.m.?
Amendment to the SYNTEC CBA that applies to executive employees subject to a specific working time scheme (convention de forfait en jours sur l'année). does not prevent employees from checking their emails after 6 p.m., but they must disconnect from remote working devices during rest periods and employers must ensure means are in place to ensure this happens
Conventions de forfait en jours sur l'année assessed in a more and more restrictive way by the courts
39January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Germany – New employment laws
Minimum wage legislation 1/1/2015: First nationwide minimum hourly wage of EUR 8.50 New family and medical leave rights 1/1/2015: changes to the German Care Act and the German Family
Care Act will for employers with more than 25 employees Employee entitled to work part-time to care for sick relatives, weekly
working time may be reduced to up to 15 hours; employees entitled to take 10 days’ leave in the case of an immediate need for care. During this time, they will be reimbursed by a state fund
Special dismissal protection Reform of German Parental Allowance and Parental Leave Act Parental Allowance Plus will be available for parents of children born on
and after 7/1/2015. Right to request up to 24 months of paid parental leave (instead of 12 months) or, if both parents decide to go on parental leave, 28 months (instead of 14 months) to be shared between the parents
40January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Italy – Jobs Act
New rules governing consequences of unfair dismissal - Rules for companies with more than 15 employees will change for new hires only. For a period following hiring (3 years proposed), reinstatement for unfair dismissal to be limited to specific cases only (i.e., discriminatory dismissals or where alleged disciplinary grounds are not proven). For dismissals due to economic reasons and collective dismissals, reinstatement not to be available and employees will be entitled to financial compensation only (the amount of which may be increased)
Simplification of the labor legislation - Reduction of the number of fixed-term contracts and atypical working agreements; simplification of the labor code; and review of the system of protections and safeguards
Minimum hourly salary - Experimental introduction of an "hourly minimum salary" for all employment relationships
Change of job duties - In cases of a restructuring, new law is expected to give employers more freedom to change job duties assigned to employees, in accordance with the provisions of collective bargaining (at national, local, or company level)
41January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Changes to employment laws in The Netherlands
Changes coming into effect on 1 January 2015 Use of non-compete restrictions in fixed-term contracts Prohibited unless the restrictions are necessary to protect a substantial
business interest. Court will be able to test the justification and declare restraint void
Probationary periods in fixed-term contracts and requirement to notify a fixed-term employee of non-renewal Only possible to include probationary period if the contract's duration is
six months or more. The employer must inform the fixed-term worker of any decision not to extend the contract one month before the contract end date
42January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Changes to employment laws in The Netherlands
Changes coming into effect on 1 July 2015 Conversion of fixed-term employment contracts into indefinite
term contracts Currently employers can offer up to three contracts for a definite period, for
no longer than three years in total From 1 July 2015, after two years of employment under definite term
contracts, the contract will convert into an indefinite contract (unless the chain of consecutive contracts is broken by a six month break)
Reforms to Dutch dismissal procedures and severance payments Currently, "dual dismissal system". If it is not possible to terminate with
mutual consent, an employer can terminate by giving notice after receiving permission from the UWV or through a court ruling. It is proposed: New compulsory proceedings (UWV or court) will apply depending on the reason
for termination Severance payment will be capped and eligibility to such payments will change
43January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Some other important expected Europe-wide developments
Reform of the EU Data Protection Regime European Parliament approved proposals to reform
and harmonize EU data protection laws across Europe; Council must adopt the proposals to become law
Regulation setting out an EU framework for data protection and A Directive on protecting personal data. For example: Company would have to seek prior authorization of
an EU national data protection authority before disclosing an EU citizen’s data and inform the citizen about the request
Right to erase personal data and new limits on personal “profiling” on the internet
Draft proposes substantial fines for data breaches of up to EUR100 million or up to 5% of annual worldwide turnover, whichever is greater
44January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Other important expected Europe-wide developments
New EU Directive on Trade Secrets In December 2013 EU Commission adopted proposal for Directive to
provide standardized level of protection for trade secrets across Europe
Proposal aims to harmonize rules on the acquisition, use and disclosure of confidential business information across the EU: Definitions of a trade secret and of unlawful acquisition and use of
trade secrets
Remedies for redress (including precautionary seizure of goods, interim injunctions, compensation and damages)
Limitation period of two years for claims
Protection of trade secrets during litigation
Proposed Directive is with Council for adoption
45January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
Some other important expected Europe-wide developments
Gender Balance on Corporate Boards
EU Parliament has approved legislative report on EU Gender Directive which will require member states to ensure that companies take measures to adopt clear and transparent appointment procedures to attain at least 40% female non-executive directors by January 2020
Directive will apply to EU-incorporated companies with more than 250 employees listed on any EU regulated market that have an annual worldwide turnover of more than EUR50 million
Where candidates are equally well qualified in terms of suitability, competence and professional performance, priority to be given to candidate of the under-represented sex (unless an objective assessment tilts the balance in favor of the other candidate). Companies must publish the gender composition of their board annually
Directive requires the approval of Council to become law
46January 2015Employment Law Briefing 2015
MIDDLE EAST/AFRICA
47
Middle East/Africa agenda
Israel – New notification requirements for job applicants
Saudi Arabia – Changes to the Nitaqat System
South Africa – New employment legislation: anti-discrimination rules; increased protections for part-time and temporary workers
48Employment Law Briefing 2015 January 2015
New job notification requirements in Israel
Effective 1/30/2015 employers will be obligated to provide written notification to job applicants: Notification regarding the progress in the screening
process – two months from the date on which the job candidates begin their participation in the screening process at the latest, and, every two months thereafter, for as long as the screening process continues
Notification regarding a decision not to accept them for the applied position – no later than 14 days following the date on which another candidate is accepted for the position
“Screening Process” defined broadly to include “interview or examinations/assessments”
Applies to all employers with 25 or more employees and all positions except for temporary ones
49Employment Law Briefing 2015 January 2015
Changes to the NITAQAT System In Saudi Arabia
Roles reserved for Saudi nationals only Applies regardless of the company's
Saudization quota and size
Evidence of qualifications for post required
Applies together with Nitaqat
Nitaqat Replaces previous quota system
Dependent on size and category of company (205 categories)
Calculation of Saudization percentages
Changes Extension of period of time for which Saudi
national must be employed before they count as part of a company’s Saudization percentage
50Employment Law Briefing 2015 January 2015
Saudization percentage for NITAQATsystem for the IT sector
51Employment Law Briefing 2015 January 2015
New employment legislation in force in South Africa
Amendments to the Employment Equity Act, 55 of 1998 (EEA) and the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, 75 of 1997 (BCEAA)
Portions of the amendments went into effect on 8/1/2014 and 9/1/2014
Expansion of protected grounds for discrimination
Introduction of equal pay
Increased sanctions for non-compliance with the EEA
Labour Relations Amendment Act effective 1/1/2015
Offers more protections to fixed-term, temporary, and part-time workers who earn below a specified income threshold (currently R205,433.30 per annum (approximately USD 17,730.00))
Amendments primarily intended to limit use of these employees to true short term contracts (e.g., 3 months or less)
Implements non-discrimination provisions protecting part-time employees
52Employment Law Briefing 2015 January 2015
AMERICAS
53
Americas agenda
Brazil – Expanded dismissal and anti-discrimination protections; increased flexibility in engaging temporary workers
Canada – Anti-bullying and harassment requirements in British Columbia; compliance with accessibility regulations in Ontario
Mexico – New regime for workplace inspections by the labor authority
54Employment Law Briefing 2015 January 2015
Developments in Brazil
FRANCHISOR liability: franchisor found not liable for the employment obligations of its franchisee
Unemployment Guarantee Fund: Reduction in statute of limitations for claims against severance funds
Anti-Discrimination: Discrimination on grounds of HIV/AIDS status is criminal offense
Temporary workers: Temporary contracts may not be issued or extended over a maximum of 9 months in total (previously 3 months with the possibility of extension for another 3 months)
Dismissal protections: Job protection for guardians of new-born children in the event of the mother’s death
Work time: New regulations for work on Sundays and holidays
55Employment Law Briefing 2015 January 2015
New developments in British Columbia, Canada
Anti-bullying and Harassment Requirements Employers required to develop policies
regarding workplace bullying and harassment and to take steps to prevent or minimize workplace bullying
Supervisor and worker training requirements
Reporting Work Place Accidents
56Employment Law Briefing 2015 January 2015
Changes to employment legislation inOntario, Canada
Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Compliance Employers required to put into place policies, procedures and
training including individualized workplace emergency response information for employees
Deadlines differ depending on the size of an employer’s workforce
Job Protected Leaves 3 new job protected leaves introduced: Family Caregiver Leave,
Critically Ill Childcare Leave, and Crime-Related Death and Disappearance Leave
Amendments to Employment Legislation Employment Standards Act: Minimum wage increases; removal of
monetary limitations on recovery for unpaid wages
Occupational Health and Safety Act: Expanded definition of “worker”
57Employment Law Briefing 2015 January 2015
Labor authority inspections in Mexico
New regulations regarding labor inspections published through the General Regulations for Work Inspection and Sanctions Applicability (Reglamento General de Inspección del Trabajo y Aplicación de Sanciones)
Regulations went into effect 9/17/2014
Purpose: monitor companies’ compliance with employment legislation and to apply sanctions where non-compliance is detected
New mechanism for companies to request inspection which will not trigger sanctions if non-compliant
58Employment Law Briefing 2015 January 2015
ON THE HORIZON
59
Global workforce issues in 2015 and beyond
60
Emerging Global Workforce IssuesAlternative workforces
Data privacy & security
Performance management on the global scale
Cross-borderteams
Global policies and procedures
Local lawcompliance
M&A and restructurings
Compliance, FCPA
Health and safety threats and mobile employees
Global expansion Global reductions in force
Wage & hour compliance on the global scale
Global whistleblowers and Code
Discrimination & harassment
Cross-border litigation
Global attorney-client privilege issues
Employment Law Briefing 2015 January 2015