After various court battles, two ballot initiatives were set to be on the November ballot for voter consideration. If passed, one would have increased the state minimum wage and the other would have required employers to provide sick leave to employees. Under Michigan law, though, the Legislature is permitted the opportunity to foreclose the issues from appearing on the ballot by adopting those initiatives through legislation ...
On August 31, 2018 California’s legislature passed Senate Bill 1402. Unless vetoed by Governor Brown on or before September 30, SB 1402 will allow shippers to be held jointly liable for state labor and employment law violations by port trucking companies. The bill, which was authored by Senator Lara (D-Bell Gardens), is aimed at ending the purported “exploitation of truck drivers who haul cargo from California’s ports ...
Following the enactment of the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has adopted an amendment to Rule 701(e) increasing the threshold amount of securities that can be sold during a 12-month period from $5 million to $10 million. Securities sold in excess of the threshold trigger enhanced disclosure obligations for the issuer ...
Law 40 has, among other, some provisions that affect the workplace, such as the following: Obligations and prohibitions for employers: Any discrimination and stigmatizing or segregating act is prohibited to the detriment of those affected, as well as against their relatives and friends. Every employer is obliged to implement practical ILO recommendations on STI and HIV, and must take all necessary measures to effectively protect the life and health of its affected workers ...
In Reed v. Exel Logistics, Inc., No. 17-0864, 2018 WL 2769041 (W. Va. June 6, 2018), the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia clarified the circumstances necessary for an employer to claim overpayment of temporary total disability ("TTD") benefits. The question arose after an employer's claims examiner paid a claimant for an additional 156 days past the 104-week limit ...
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) issued a final rule to “Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses, “ which requires employers to electronically submit their injury and illness records to OSHA. Specifically, establishments with 250 or more employees must annually submit their Forms 300, 300A, and 301. And, establishments with 20 to 249 employees must annually submit their Form 300A ...
The Internal Revenue Service has released a Private Letter Ruling ("PLR") allowing a plan sponsor to make contributions to employees' 401(k) accounts if the employees are repaying student loans. This is exciting news for employers sponsoring 401(k) plans who hope to attract and retain employees as student loan debt rises to unprecedented levels. The PLR confirmed that some student loan repayment programs linked to 401(k) employer contributions are acceptable ...
All employers who were required to publish a Gender Pay Gap Report1 for the financial year 2017-2018 have now done so. A report published by the UK Parliament’s Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Committee2 has confirmed that 78% of organisations have gender pay gaps that favour men, and that the national gender pay gap median is around 18%. The picture is worse in certain sectors, where it was found that gender pay gaps of over 40% were “not uncommon” ...
The Austin Court of Appeals has temporarily blocked implementation of an Austin city ordinance that would require employers to provide paid sick leave to employees. The ordinance was set to take effect on October 1, 2018. The City of Austin passed the paid sick leave ordinance in February of 2018. The State of Texas immediately filed suit to challenge the ordinance claiming that it was preempted by the Texas Minimum Wage Act ...
In an interesting and (as yet) unreported judgment handed down by the Labour Court, which considered an appeal against a Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (“CCMA”) award (rather than a review), the court confirmed the principle that an employer cannot be held liable in terms of the Employment Equity Act, 1998 (the “EEA”) for unfair discrimination resulting from actions towards one of its employees by one of its customers ...
The primary remedy for a substantively unfair dismissal is reinstatement, which aims to place an employee into the position he or she would have held had it not been for the substantively unfair dismissal. Generally speaking, reinstatement awards are coupled with orders for back pay, that is, payment of the remuneration that the employee would have enjoyed over the period between the dismissal and the reinstatement order ...
Earlier this year, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral resources ("MEMR") issued Press Release No. 00022/04/SJI/2018 to continue arranging dozens of overlapping regulations and permits ("Simplification"). So far, 90 regulations and 96 certifications/recommendation/permits ("Regulations") have started since 22 January 2018 ...
Earlier this year, the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (the “MEMR”) issued Regulation Number 10 of 2018 on The Second Amendment to Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Regulation Number 10 of 2017 on the Principles of Power Purchase Agreements (“MEMR Reg 10/2018”) which came into effect on 13 February 2018 ...
IN THIS ARTICLE, PARVATHY DEVI RAJA MOORTHY DISCUSSES THE CODE OF CONDUCT FOR INDUSTRIAL HARMONY Introduction The Code of Conduct for Industrial Harmony (“the Code”) was agreed upon between the then Ministry of Labour and Manpower[1], the Malaysian Council of Employers’ Organisation[2]and the Malaysian Trades Union Congress to lay down principles and guidelines to employers and workers on the practice of industrial relations for achieving greater industrial ha
IN THIS ARTICLE PARVATHY DEVI RAJA MOORTHY DISCUSSES WHETHER AN INDUSTRIAL COURT ACTION CAN PROCEED WITHOUT COMPLYING WITH SECTION 226(3) OR SECTION 263(2) OF THE COMPANIES ACT 1965. Introduction In the civil court, any action or proceeding pending against a company after the presentation of a winding-up petition may be stayed by the court ...
IN THIS ARTICLE, REENA ENBASEGARAM LOOKS AT THE LAW RELATING TO COMPETING UNIONS. Introduction The strength of a trade union is derived from its membership which is its paramount asset. Upon being accorded recognition, a trade union will bargain on behalf of the employees and, in this regard, acts as a principal and not as an agent of its members[1]. The contracting rights - including those of non-union members and future employees - are transferred to the trade union ...
IN THIS ARTICLE, NADIA ABU BAKAR DISCUSSES AN EMPLOYER’S PREROGATIVE TO TRANSFER EMPLOYEES Introduction There may be an instance where you receive a letter from your company with the following content: “In light of the business requirements of the Company, you shall be transferred to xx with effect from xx ...
Top 10 Questions Employers Should Ask When Hiring and Firing in Malaysia HIRING IN MALAYSIA: Does the employee have a right to work in Malaysia or does he/she need a work permit? Is the employment offer subject to any condition precedent (e.g ...
IN THIS ARTICLE PARVATHY DEVI RAJA MOORTHY LOOKS AT THE IMPORTANCE OF ASCERTAINING THE IDENTITY OF THE EMPLOYER WHEN LODGING A COMPLAINT OF UNFAIR DISMISSAL ESPECIALLY IN SECONDMENT CASES. Introduction The correct identification of an employer is essential in the lodging of an unfair dismissal complaint pursuant tosection 20of theIndustrial Relations Act 1967where the relationship between the employee and the company is unclear ...
IN THIS ARTICLE, WONG KIAN JUN CONSIDERS A RE-LOOK AT THE LAWS ON RETRENCHMENT Introduction During uncertain times and shrinking profits, organisations may decide to reorganise their business structure in order to create a leaner workforce thereby reducing their operating costs to weather the impact of a slowing economy. Inevitably, the reorganisation would result in the retrenchment of its employees who are considered surplus to the needs of the organisation ...
During the course of recent months, South African Parliament has considered four bills proposing significant changes to South Africa’s labour legislation. These are the National Minimum Wage Bill, the Basic Conditions of Employment Amendment Bill (the “BCEA Bill”), the Labour Relations Amendment Bill (the “LRA Bill”) and the Labour Laws Amendment Bill ...
Legislation and agencies 1 What are the main statutes and regulations relating to employment? The Labor Code of the Philippines (Presidential Decree No. 442, as amended) (the Labor Code) and the Omnibus Rules Implementing the Labor Code ...
One of the most pressing issues for employers in relation to Brexit is immigration and the rights of EU citizens following the UK’s exit from the EU. Many UK businesses hire EU workers, with some sectors such as agriculture being particularly dependent on seasonal EU workers; still more will employ individuals who have family members who are EU nationals ...
