Health and safety issues in the agricultural and rural sector are a matter of considerable concern. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is urging farmers to make safety a priority to reduce the number of injuries and fatalities in the sector. This recent campaign was prompted by four fatalities over a fortnight, coming only weeks after Farm Safety Week ...
We have recently assisted a well known fashion retailer in successfully defending an unlawful deduction from wages claim in relation to furlough payments received by the employee. This is an important decision, not only for our client, but also other employers who have made use of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (“the Scheme”). Background The employee’s contract of employment stated the employee had a contractual entitlement to a minimum of 20 hours per week ...
On Aug. 13, 2021, OSHA released updated guidance on mitigating and preventing the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace. The new guidance updates OSHA’s recommendations for fully vaccinated employees and for schools, and it supplements certain industry-specific guidance ...
On 10 August 2021, the South African Minister of Employment and Labour gazetted Regulations which established a temporary financial relief scheme for workers who have lost income due to the partial or full closure of workplaces destroyed, damaged, looted or otherwise affected by the recent unrest. The scheme is a welcome intervention in circumstances where workers are unable to work due to the looting or riots and are not entitled to remuneration ...
Update: On July 28, 2021, an Interim Final Rule on COVID-19 Revenue Reduction Score, Direct Borrower Forgiveness Process, and Appeals Deferment was posted. That Interim Final Rule conforms the applicable PPP rules to provide that a timely appeal by the PPP borrower of a final SBA loan review decision extends the deferment period of the PPP loan until the Office of Hearings and Appeals’ decision becomes final. See below: “Consequences of an Appeal ...
Superintendence Resolution Nº 000170-2021-MIGRACIONES, published last August 6, provides for the repeal of Superintendence Resolution Nº 000104-2020-MIGRACIONES (hereinafter, Resolution 104) and provides the following measures: Extension of term.-The term of temporary or resident migratory statuses granted from March 16, 2020, which expired during the validity of Resolution 104, is extended until the entry into force of this resolution ...
A recent case reminds us of the continuing reality that women, because of their childcare responsibilities, are less likely to be able to accommodate certain working patterns than men and that failing to take this into account could be discriminatory. The case of Dobson v North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust involved a claim of indirect sex discrimination ...
Thanks to the pandemic ‘working from home’ is a phrase we are all used to hearing. With the lifting of restrictions, however, ‘hybrid working’ is set to take its place. We consider the benefits of having a hybrid working policy and what to include in it ...
Among the other challenges facing employers in the COVID-19 pandemic is the increasing prevalence of “long COVID”. Although not much is known about long COVID at this time, there are some proactive measures that employers can take to identify and manage it in the workplace. At present, there is no official medical definition of long COVID. What we do know is that some people experience symptoms that last for weeks or months after they have contracted COVID-19 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
