When can an employer in the private sector interfere with a disciplinary sanction imposed by a chairperson of a disciplinary hearing, in circumstances where the employer’s disciplinary code and procedure make no provision for such interference? In the recent decision in Anglo American Platinum (Ltd) v Edwin Andriaan Beyers, the Labour Appeal Court (“LAC”) was confronted with this question ...
To avoid a complicated and lengthy disciplinary proceeding, employers might consider a mutual separation agreement, to terminate an employee’s employment and pay them a sum of money. In the case of Balsdon v Valley Macadamias Group (Pty) Ltd, the Labour Court had to decide whether it could make a mutual separation agreement a court order in terms of the Labour Relations Act, 1995 (“LRA”) ...
Can an employer require its employees to speak a specific language or to be of a specific nationality as an inherent requirement of the job? Can an employee be dismissed for operational requirements if the employee is unable to speak that language or is not of a specific nationality? Would this be automatically unfair on the basis of unfair discrimination? This issue, along with several other claims, was what the Labour Appeal Court (“LAC”) had to decide in the matter of
A recent Constitutional Court judgment is an important reminder to employers that employees must be granted a fair opportunity to ventilate their case at a disciplinary hearing. Failure to do so could result in an award for compensation against the employer, even when the misconduct was of a very serious nature and the employer was justified in dismissing the employee ...
In our third Post Pandemic webinar, our panel discussed the topic of people in the context of Operational Resilience (OR). Shoosmiths’ Partner Sam Tyfield spoke to colleagues Yvonne Oakenfull (Learning & Development Manager), Kevin McCavish (Partner and Head of Shoosmiths’ London Employment team) and Karen Mortenson (Principal Associate in our London Employment team) ...
Not yet in the driver’s seat but hungry for change, millennials are lobbying to shape the way the companies are run. What do North Korea’s Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un, Finland’s Prime Minister Sanna Marin, United States Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg have in common? They are all captains in their fields. And they are all millennials ...
With employers reopening fully and employees returning to the workplace from the pandemic, there has been a steady flow of challenges -- both legal filings and political and public opposition -- by individuals opposing mandatory requirements from employers and institutions to be vaccinated in order to return to work or school, subject to certain legal requirements under the ADA and valid religious objections ...
Starting around October 26, 2020, the Small Business Administrations (the “SBA”) asked Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) lenders to provide certain questionnaires to PPP borrowers with loans of $2 million or greater. There are two questionnaire forms on the Treasury: Form 3509 for for-profit borrowers and Form 3510 for non-profit borrowers ...
Dinsmore's Tarah Rémy wrote an article for Beverage Master titled "Legal Implications of Playing Music at Your Brewery," where she discusses the intellectual property considerations breweries should take when choosing music, whether played through speakers or live. You can read the full article by clicking the link at the bottom. Below is an excerpt ...
We would like to introduce you to our new project, Podcast in English – “Be Aware and Share”! In this series of discussions, we explore the topical legal challenges faced by business and, together with experts, analyze significant cases and provide solutions. Click here to learn more. 6 episodes are available right now: Teleworking in Russia: digital turn in employment. Employment solutions for commercial secrecy. Internal investigations in Russia ...
Like many other governments, the Government of Quebec decided to invest in infrastructure to help mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and stimulate Quebec’s economy. A significant number of investments will be made in the transportation sector, and the government wants to accelerate the realisation of several previously announced transportation infrastructure projects in the greater Montréal area ...
On 26 July 2021, the Malaysia Competition Commission (“MyCC”) issued a statement (“the Press Release”) that it is looking into the pricing practices of food delivery platform companies including but not limited to the “imposition of exorbitant commission fees” by the said companies (“the Inquiry”). The Press Release is accessible here ...
Solicitor Chiara Pieri tells Scottish Legal News about her career journey – from working as a paralegal to qualifying as a solicitor and becoming president of the Scottish Young Lawyers’ Association. In 2014 Chiara Pieri graduated from Glasgow University with an LLB with Italian – and plans to go globetrotting before embarking on her legal career ...
With the summer holidays upon us, what are the implications for employers managing holiday requests and the ever-changing guidance on foreign travel? We consider how to deal with employees who travel internationally and the current isolation rules ...
ossibly the most confusing issue in trade mark law is this: when are two trade marks confusingly similar? We’ll discuss two recent European trade mark judgments which hopefully don’t add to the confusion. THE MILEY CYRUS CASE Is the trade mark MILEY CYRUS confusingly similar to the trade mark CYRUS? That’s the issue that the European Union General Court had to grapple with recently ...
On July 16, 2021 the IRS issued Revenue Procedure 2021-30, which modifies and supersedes Revenue Procedure 2019-19, expanding the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System ("EPCRS"). EPCRS is a program for correcting documentation and operational failures for retirement plans that are intended to be qualified plans under Sections 401(a) and 403(b) of the Internal Revenue Code ...
In January 2021, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed House Bill 263, better known as the Fresh Start Act (the Act), into law. The Act standardizes the professional licensure process in Ohio by removing vague disqualifiers such as “moral turpitude” and “lack of moral character.” Through its restorative justice approach, the Act offers professionals with records of certain prior offenses a path to licensure. Most of the Act’s provisions become effective on Oct ...
Key Points Governor Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill (AB) 133, which creates a $750 per day civil money penalty for skilled nursing facilities (SNF) that do not comply with a transfer, discharge, or readmission hearing decision within three calendar days. AB 133 also requires an SNF to submit a certification of compliance to the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS), attesting it has complied with the hearing officer's order ...
Employers often seek to rely on legitimate interests when processing employee personal data. But many do not realise that this should involve completion of a legitimate interests assessment. We consider what is involved in carrying out such assessments. What the law says The UK General Data Protection Regulations (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 regulate the way in which employers process personal data ...
The data protection landscape has seen significant change and more is expected. What does that mean for charities specifically? On our 8 July, 2021 webinar Shoosmiths’ Partner, Sarah Tedstone, identified areas with significant change already and where action will be needed in the next few weeks and months to stay compliant ...
On July 27, 2021, Governor Kate Brown signed into law a bill that will make it more difficult for health care entities in Oregon to consummate mergers and similar transactions ...
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the rules surrounding weddings regularly changed to reflect government guidelines and the world’s growing understanding of the virus. The rules ranged from a complete ban on weddings in March 2020, to a limit of 30 people (including the engaged couple) without any singing or dancing in June 2020, to a guest limit depending on the venue in June 2021, with various stages in between ...
