Our June update covers the following: a look at the proposed legislation which will enhance the penalties for  occupational health and safety offences in Hong Kong, here; the tightening of the rules relating to social security and housing fund contributions in the PRC – see here; in Sri Lanka, the new Personal Data Protection Act … Read more

As of August 2022, the EU Directive 2019/1152 on “transparent and predictable working conditions in the European Union (Working Conditions Directive)” will be transposed into German law. This is intended to make the specific terms and conditions of employment even more transparent for the individual employee. The implementation takes place through the extension of the … Read more

With the ongoing development and growing application of artificial intelligence, analytics and automation there is increasing public and regulatory interest in ensuring that any potential risks stemming from these technologies are mitigated. A key area of concern is around ‘bias’ and AI fairness. This whitepaper – prepared in collaboration with UK Finance  – explores ideas of … Read more

There are a raft of changes to superannuation laws that are taking effect from 1 July 2022, some of which will impact how employers make superannuation contributions on behalf of their employees. Whilst the changes themselves are relatively simple, implementing them could be considerably more complex. It’s worth taking a look at your current arrangements … Read more

The government has an ever-lengthening to-do list when it comes to employment law reform, with several initiatives announced over the last few years still awaiting the moment “when Parliamentary time allows”. It is beginning to feel like that time may never come.  The long-awaited Employment Bill was once again missed out of the Queen’s Speech … Read more

On 15 June 2022, the Hong Kong Legislative Council passed the Employment (Amendment) Bill 2022 (Bill), which has been introduced by the Hong Kong Government in February 2022 – during the outbreak of the fifth wave of Covid-19 in the city. The Bill will come into force on a date to be gazetted and will … Read more

The Court of Appeal has recently emphasised the importance of speed if an ex-employer wishes to obtain an interim injunction enforcing a non-compete covenant.  The longer the delay, the more likely it will be that the employee can persuade the court that the damage to the ex-employer’s interests has already been done and the status … Read more

On 15 June 2022, the Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission handed down the Annual Wage Review 2021–22 decision awarding a 5.2% increase to the National Minimum Wage (NMW). This results in an increase of $40 per week, bringing the NMW to $812.60 per week or $21.38 per hour. Read more