The Court of Appeal has held that an email containing advice from an in-house lawyer on redundancy was not, as the EAT had found, a cloak for dismissal on the basis of discrimination (Curless v Shell International Limited [2019] EWCA Civ 1710). The Court of Appeal agreed with the Employment Tribunal that the advice given … Read more
The Equality and Human Rights Commission has this week published new Guidance on the use of confidentiality agreements in discrimination cases. The Guidance is non-statutory and much of its content is expressed to be ‘good practice’ rather than setting out legal requirements. Key recommendations include that in most cases employers should not use confidentiality agreements … Read more
It’s been a busy summer for employment law changes, and there are a number of upcoming compliance deadlines which may impact your business. These, and other key developments, are outlined below. September 30, 2019 Deadline For Submitting EEO-1 Pay Data By September 30, 2019, employers covered by EEO-1 reporting requirements (generally, employers with 100 or … Read more
Our update this month takes a look at the periods of how fixed term contracts are calculated in Cambodia to avoid deemed permanent employment. Read more about that here. Over in Japan, combatting power harassment continues to be an important objective for the National Diet. We consider the latest legislative changes here. India has introduced … Read more
The Government has confirmed that it is going ahead with its proposals to regulate confidentiality clauses in settlement agreements and employment contracts, largely as set out in its March consultation. The consultation response confirms that, “when Parliamentary time allows”, the Government intends to: legislate to ensure that a confidentiality clause cannot prevent an individual disclosing … Read more
On 6 June 2019, the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal ruled that the Hong Kong Government could not deny spousal benefits to employees because they are in a same-sex marriage. The Court’s decision only applies to the provision of employee benefits to government employees, but it has increased local focus on discrimination based on … Read more
New provisions regulating workplace harassment and bullying set out in South Korea’s amended Labour Standards Act (the “LSA“) were recently implemented on 16 July 2019. Employers should ensure that their internal policies are in line with these changes. Read more
In May 2019, a draft amendment to the current Vietnamese labour code (the “Draft No 2“) was submitted to the National Assembly, pending approval in November 2019. If passed, the Draft No 2 would replace the current Labour Code No 10/2012/QH13 (the “Labour Code“). Major changes proposed in the Draft No 2 are explained below. Read more
The Government has published Health is everyone’s business: proposals to reduce ill health-related job loss, a consultation closing on 7 October, which proposes a new right for employees to request workplace modifications on health grounds (this would be in addition to the duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled employees). This would be similar to … Read more
