The implementation of night work in an enterprise requires the conclusion of a collective agreement including certain mandatory provisions, such as the mention of measures to facilitate the articulation of their nocturnal professional activity with their personal life. This is essentially to provide the employee a way to return home at the end of his night service. However, a court banned a supermarket company from employing employees after 9 PM in a tourist area (in Paris), because it found insufficient provisions of the agreement on night work that covered the cheapest mode of transport home, and only if there was no public transport. The court considered that the Labour Code provides “the provision of a means of transport supported by the employer that allows employees to return to their place of residence .”
European Union: Whistle Blowing Directive – 2 years to get ready for the new reporting rules
The new EU Directive on Whistle Blowing gives the Member States two years, until 17 December 2021, to transpose its provisions into national law. The main goal of the Directive is to introduce a harmonised procedure to deal with whistle blowing and to offer whistle blowers a certain level of protection against retaliation
Colombia: New Migratory Policy regulation will impact labour laws and workplace related affairs
One of the key changes to Colombia’s migration policy under Resolution 3167 of 2019, stipulates that foreigners will no longer be required to have a Visa in order to enter the country, if they are granted any one of the permits or documents provided for in the resolution
China: Ministry of Public Security and the Shanghai Government enter into Memorandum of Cooperation to Pioneer Immigration Management Measures
The Ministry of Public Security and the Shanghai Government aim to enhance the long-term and permanent residence facilities for foreign talents who are introduced into the new port-adjacent area of Shanghai Free Trade Zone. Specifically, foreigners with high-level talents will enjoy certain conveniences and can apply for permanent residence and may also recommend other foreign professionals for permanent residence
China: MHRSS publishes Interim Measures requiring all Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan residents working in China to contribute to social insurance beginning in 2020
The Interim Measures published by the MHRSS have drawn the attention of Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan employees and employers. It should be noted that all HMT residents working in China will be required to contribute to all categories of social insurance
China: Hangzhou Court held that the employer infringed upon the employee’s equal employment rights and is ordered to issue an apology and pay compensation due to regional discrimination
An equal employment rights case, Yan v. Zhejiang A Company, was heard in the Hangzhou Internet Court online. The Court held that Company A’s regional discrimination on Yan harmed his equal employment rights. The Court also ordered Company A to apologise to Yan orally, publish an apology letter with the national media and compensate Yan RMB 10,000 for his spiritual damages and reasonable legal costs
Canada: The Foibles of Fixed-Term Contracts
While Fixed-term employment contracts may, at first blush, seem like an attractive option, the risks often outweigh the benefits. Therefore, employers should carefully consider the pitfalls of fixed-term employment contracts when deciding how best to structure their workforces
Belgium – Labour Court of Appeal sheds light on the distinction between teleworking and homeworking
Although the concepts of homeworking (also called domestic work) and telework are often confused with one another, as they both entail the situation that the worker does not work from the office of the employer, there are important differences. In a judgment of 2 July 2019, the Brussels Labour Court of Appeal has denied the claim of an employee seeking the benefits of a domestic worker, as she was actually a teleworker
Australia: Common Law Course of Conduct Principle Affirmed by the Federal Court of Australia
The Federal Court of Australia has applied the common law course of conduct principle (where contraventions committed by the same person arose from a single course of conduct can result in a single penalty) to multiple contraventions by the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union, in both organising and being involved in industrial action in two separate locations (different Australian States), on the basis that it was one concerted industrial campaign against a shipping terminal operator’s proposed redundancies, and therefore should not involve “double punishment”
Argentina: Employees to collect twice the severance compensation provided in case of wrongful dismissal
The National Government has declared a public labour emergency for 180 days as from 13 December 2019, so till 10 June 2020, entitling employees to duplicate severance for each and every item allowable in cases of wrongful dismissal