Our matrix summarizes the key issues for employee share and cash awards and covers tax, securities, exchange control, labor law and data privacy considerations for such awards in 50 countries.
The UK Government has introduced the NHS COVID Pass. The NHS COVID Pass allows you to show others the details of your COVID-19 vaccine (or vaccines) when travelling. It is a secure way to share your coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination records or test COVID-19 status. In England and at places that use the service, you may be asked to demonstrate your COVID-19 status in order to gain entry to a venue or event.
The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has held that the lack of protection from detriment for participating in industrial action under section 146 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 (TULRCA) was a breach of Article 11 of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR) which guarantees the right to freedom of assembly and the right of workers to form and join trade unions. The EAT held that it was possible to read such protection into section 146.
The government has published its response to its consultation on sexual harassment in the workplace, which closed in October 2019. When parliamentary time allows, the government will legislate to introduce a new duty on employers to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace and introduce explicit protections for harassment from third parties such as customers and clients.
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled in two German cases that a ban on wearing any visible signs of political, philosophical or religious belief is not direct discrimination on the grounds of religion or belief provided it is applied in a general and undifferentiated way. Such a policy may be indirectly discriminatory unless it can be objectively justified by a legitimate aim and the means of achieving that aim are appropriate and necessary.
The Government recently enacted Law 2101 of 2021 (“Law”) which came into force on 15 July 2021 and aims to reduce the working week from 48 to 42 hours in a gradual manner (from 2023 to 2026).
The recent unrest and looting in South Africa have had a severe impact on businesses and employers in the country. Such businesses have had to address urgent issues including concerns regarding insurance cover, invoking force majeure clauses, ensuring employee health and safely, assisting affected or stranded employees and implementing disciplinary action for employees caught taking part in the looting.
The government has published updated guidance for employers that applies in England from Monday 19 July 2021, to coincide with the ending of almost all remaining mandatory COVID-19 related restrictions. The upshot of the guidance is that the government shifts responsibility to employers to determine when and how to initiate, or ramp up, a return to the office, including what ongoing safety measures might be required.
On 9 July 2021, President Biden issued his Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy (EO) (Fact Sheet here) signaling support for severe limitation of post-employment noncompete restrictions–a move likely to add fuel to the fire of states passing laws to limit the use of post-employment noncompetes.
Our Asia Pacific Employment & Compensation Team is pleased to provide you with our second quarterly update for 2021 highlighting key employment law changes across the Asia Pacific region.