June has been a busy month for employment updates in Hong Kong. Long awaited amendments to Hong Kong’s discrimination have taken effect from 19 June, with changes to maternity leave expected to pass soon. Measures to ensure ORSO schemes are genuinely employment-based will kick in on 26 June 2020. Finally, the applications for the first … Read more

Tomorrow (10 June 2020) is the latest date an employer can put an employee on their first period of furlough if the employer wants to furlough that employee for all or part of their normal hours and claim a grant under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) after 30 June 2020.  This is because claims … Read more

The Government has published its response to the consultation on the proposed new right to neonatal leave and pay.  Employees whose babies spend at least 7 continuous days in neonatal care either immediately or within the first 28 days of life will be entitled to one week’s leave per full week their child spends in neonatal care, … Read more

The following changes came into force in April: From 6 April 2020 employees are entitled to two weeks’ statutory parental bereavement leave following the death of a child under 18 or a stillbirth after 24 weeks of pregnancy.  There is also a right to statutory pay for those with 26 weeks’ service.  Employers will need … Read more

All employers will clearly be concerned about the impact on their staff and business of the COVID-19 outbreak.  In addition to ensuring employees have a safe place to work, employers will need to facilitate remote working where possible and devise plans to deal with possible resourcing and supply chain issues, including considering the implications of … Read more

Last summer the Court of Appeal ruled that an employer’s failure to enhance shared parental pay in the same way as enhanced maternity pay was not unlawful direct or indirect sex discrimination or unequal pay (see here).  The Court considered that a woman on maternity leave was not in comparable circumstances to someone on shared … Read more

As working from home becomes the new normal, business and employees should be reminded of their key obligations in respect of employees working away from the office under Hong Kong’s safety laws. In Hong Kong, an employer has a duty to “so far as reasonably practicable”, ensure the safety and health at work of all … Read more

This month’s update looks at: the rise of “patahara” (paternity related harassment) in Japan, in particular the most recent legal challenge considering this issue; in Singapore, the Government’s upcoming plans to increase the retirement age and re-employment age and what employers need to do to prepare; the Indonesian government’s proposal to reform the existing labour … Read more