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.
On 12 August 2021, the Spanish Agency of Medicinal Products and Medical Devices published a briefing note on the new regulatory framework applicable to antiseptics intended for the disinfection of the surgical site prior to surgery or to the injection point. Said products had been regarded by the Spanish regulator as biocidal products until the publication of a Resolution dated 2 June 2021 which reclassified them as medicinal products.
The Singapore High Court refused a consumer’s attempt to re-file a failed claim after the lower court issued a final and unappealable decision. The consumer first brought a claim against e-commerce platform Lazada at the Small Claims Tribunal. After a decision was made, the consumer applied to the District Court for leave to appeal against the decision. The District Court refused to grant leave to appeal, which, under law, is considered as final. However, the consumer still brought a claim before the High Court, arguing that she was filing a fresh claim in respect of the damages that were not granted. The claim was refused.
Foreign, and sometimes even national companies, have had the need to access more information regarding the legal and regulatory aspects of waste management existing in Chile. Likewise, many times an in-depth analysis of the regulatory situation is necessary to understand the key aspects before investing in Chile.
On 30 June 2021, Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted a new payment services law. The law seeks to: (i) remove certain regulatory barriers for entering the Ukrainian payment services market, and (ii) implement certain European Union laws applicable to the payment services, such as Directive 2015/2366 (PSD2) and Directive 2009/110/EC (Second E-Money Directive). The law came into force on 1 August 2021 and provides the stakeholders with 12 months to prepare for the launch of the new payment services market. The law may affect many business models in payment services business which were previously essentially unregulated.
Can private employers mandate vaccination as a condition of returning to the workplace? The recent spike in the COVID-19 Delta variant has caused the re-closure of worksites or changes to workplace safety protocols, leading to legal developments that provide more clarity to this issue. In this Quick Chat video, Baker McKenzie Labor and Employment lawyers break down whether and how private employers can mandate vaccination.
Employers have been facing many difficult and untested employment law issues over the last year and a half with COVID-19 and the impact it is having on their business. One of the most critical of these issues is whether they can make vaccination compulsory for their employees. On 7 May 2021, the Saudi Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (“MHRSD”) announced that it would be mandatory for public and private sector workers to be vaccinated in order to attend the workplace. On 18 May 2021, the Ministry of Interior (“MoI”) clarified that this mandate would come into force on 1 August 2021.
The emergence and subsequent spread of the Delta variant has led several countries, most notably the United States, into adopting more stringent health and safety protocols. On 29 July, President Biden declared that the US government would be imposing vaccination requirements in certain cases and offering additional incentives for its citizens to be vaccinated.
On 20 July 2021, the Government issued Decree No. 70/2021/ND-CP (“Decree No. 70”) amending certain articles of Decree No. 181/2013/ND-CP implementing the Advertising Law (“Decree No. 181”). In line with previous drafts, Decree No. 70 focuses on regulating cross-border advertising activities and revises the three main articles, Articles 13, 14 and 15, of Decree No. 181 accordingly. The amended Decree No. 181 will take effect on 15 September 2021.
On 30 July 2021, the Official Journal of the European Union published the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/1248 of 29 of July 2021, as regards measures on good distribution practice for veterinary medicinal products in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2019/6 of the European Parliament and of the Council (“Implementing Regulation”). The Implementing Regulation applies to holders of manufacturing authorizations performing wholesale distribution of veterinary medicinal products covered by that manufacturing authorization, and to holders of a wholesale distribution authorization, including those established or operating under specific customs regimes, such as free zones or customs warehouses.