Key developments reflected in this week’s update to the tracker include the following: President Biden issued a COVID-19 Action Plan, which requires, among other things, that all employers with 100 or more employees ensure their workers are vaccinated or tested weekly. Colorado, Delaware, Indiana and Louisiana extended their state-wide orders and/or the duration of the current phase of their reopening plans Louisiana and Washington implemented state-wide mask mandates, while Nevada changed its mask mandate to give organizers of conventions in counties with substantial or high COVID-19 transmission rates the option to allow attendees to remove their masks if the organizer can guarantee that all attendees are vaccinated
17 December 2021 is the deadline for all Member States to transpose the new Whistleblower Protection Directive 2019/1937, which obliges businesses with over 50 employees to have a reporting channel. It should be noted that the aim of these new regulations is to exploit the potential for whistleblower protection to strengthen enforcement and set standards for strong protection against any reprisals.
This week’s discussion will cover the following:
• Details Behind The SEC Whistleblower Award That Pushed the Program Over $1 Billion in Whistleblower Payouts
• SEC v. DAYAKAR R. MALLU – Tipper-Tippee Insider Trading Case – SEC Investigation Tactics and Trends
• Indictment of lawyer by Trump-appointed Special Counsel for lying to the FBI in Russia investigation.
High-polluting leaded petrol was recently eradicated from the world, eliminating what was identified as a huge threat to human health and well-being, as well as its devastating effect on nature. This is just the latest development in the Environmental, Social and Governance and climate change story, which has evolved at ferocious speed over the past two-three years and has now become a key focus for both governments and organisations alike.
On 2 September 2021, the Sex Discrimination and Fair Work (Respect at Work) Amendment Bill 2021 was passed by both the Senate and the House or Representatives. Once it receives royal assent, it will operate to amend the following pieces of legislation: the Australian Human Rights Commission Act 1986, the Fair Work Act 2009, and the Sex Discrimination Act 1984.
Reclassification of individuals or activities for one purpose can have knock on consequences to business models and can lead to issues and liabilities in areas such as employment, wage tax, pensions, tax and regulatory. A decision or change in one area of law may be a time to re-assess the business model and consider whether that determination might have wider commercial implications.
As a part of its annual Virtual Trade Week series, US Customs and Border Protection issued a list of Frequently Asked Questions on forced labor (“the FAQs”). The FAQs consist of responses to ten questions focused on current issues and latest developments in forced labor enforcement.
With major vaccine developments in Latin America, including kick-offs for vaccine campaigns, employers should consider whether a vaccination policy is right for their workplace, keeping in mind that such policies implicate a broad range of employment laws and regulations, and that many of these vary from country to country.
Baker McKenzie has a team in place that has been advising clients in real-time on critical issues surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic since the first shelter-in-place/stay-at-home orders were enacted. The latest update on 27 August 2021 reflects these developments:
• The following jurisdictions extended their state-wide orders and/or the duration of the current phase of their reopening plans: Delaware, Illinois, Iowa, and New Mexico.
• The following jurisdictions imposed new face-covering requirements: Illinois, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, and West Virginia.
Following the example of companies in other countries, a number of companies in the Netherlands recently announced the requirement for employees to be vaccinated before they can return to the workplace. The announcement led to major discussion in the Netherlands, as a vaccination obligation would be a breach of fundamental rights. In this monthly feature, we discuss the possibility of requiring employees to be vaccinated.