This month the Asia EPI bulletin starts with a look at a new case in Singapore in which an employee was awarded SGD $1.4million in damages for unlawful dismissal. A timely reminder to ensure that employers follow due process when terminating employment, even in supposedly employee-friendly jurisdictions. You can read the case update here. Continuing … Read more

Last year was full of the unexpected. In this bulletin, our Hong Kong employment team reflects on some key themes that emerged last year and considers how these will keep Hong Kong employers busy in the year ahead. Health and safety As the global pandemic continues, worker health and safety will continue to dictate working … Read more

Happy New Year! Hopefully 2021 is a brighter and better one for all. Our first Asia Employment, Pensions and Incentives update of 2021 covers: the recent Supreme Court decision in Thailand, that found that forwarding confidential work documents to a personal email account amounted to disclosure, even though there was no evidence that the documents … Read more

Unfair dismissal claims can arise where an employee resigns in response to the employer’s repudiatory breach, or where an employer purports to accept a resignation that has in fact been withdrawn (thereby amounting to a dismissal).  Employers therefore need to tread carefully where there is uncertainty as to whether an employee has in fact resigned. … Read more

Employers should follow the Acas Code on grievances when handling whistleblowing disclosures;  any failure to do so could lead to an uplift of up to 25% to the compensation award for whistleblowing claims.  Employers with separate whistleblowing policies should check they comply with the Acas Code requirements. The EAT in Ikejiaku v British Institute of … Read more

In the recent decision of Lam Sin Yi Sindy v Leung King Wai William [2020] HKCFI 2525, the plaintiff challenged her former employer’s treatment of the termination of employment as a resignation. The decision is a useful reminder of the legal principles in relation to valid notice of termination and the perils of accepting a resignation given … Read more

Regulated individuals may not be able to rely on a reasonable expectation of privacy in relation to private messages on social media platforms if the messages suggest a serious breach of professional standards. The Court of Session (Inner House) has upheld a decision that police officers could have had no reasonable expectation of privacy in … Read more

Based on unusual facts, the EAT in Gallacher v Abellio Scotrail has upheld an Employment Tribunal’s decision that a dismissal without any procedural steps or appeal was fair. The claimant employee was one of two senior managers whose relationship had completely and irretrievably broken down, a fact which she accepted. The tribunal found that trading … Read more