On June 27, 2023, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (“PWFA”) went into effect. This new law requires covered employers to provide “reasonable accommodations” for the known limitations of a worker relating to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, unless the accommodation would cause the employer “undue hardship ...
On July 10th, 2023, the Chamber of Deputies approved in its Second Constitutional Procedure the bill of law that, among other matters, aims to recognize Internet access as a Public Telecommunications Service (bulletin No. 11,632-15) (the "Bill"), through various amendments to Law No. 18,168, the General Telecommunications Law ("GTL"). As a result of the abovementioned approval, the Bill has been returned to its chamber of origin (i.e ...
On July 9, 2023, major amendments to the Canada Labour Code 1 (the ?Code?) came into force, and further amendments are set to come into force shortly. These amendments relate to Part III of the Code, which covers labour standards. They were provided for in the Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 2 2, which was assented to on December 13, 2018, but are only now coming into force ...
The concept of "patient-centered" has become the core guiding principle in current research and development ("R&D") of drugs. "Patient-centered" drug R&D refers to the process of drug discovery, design, implementation and decision-making based on the patient's point of view, with the aim of efficiently developing clinically valuable drugs that better meet the needs of patients ...
The Virginia General Assembly made significant amendments to general rules for construction contracts, as well as the specific rules for public entity construction contracts in the Prompt Payment Act, that largely remove the option of “pay when paid” contracts between general contractors and subcontractors. Beginning in 2022, Virginia Code section 11-4 ...
Although developments in higher education on the issue of affirmative action in admissions may not seem relevant to private employers, the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision should prompt employers to reexamine their own diversity, equity, and inclusion (“DEI”) and voluntary affirmative action initiatives to ensure that employment decisions are not unlawfully based on membership in protected classifications ...
Mamo TCV Advocates contributed to the World Services Group Employment and Labour Group European Whistleblower Report. More than 20 European countries have contributed to this Report which provides a country-by-country update on how European Member States have transposed Directive (EU) 2019/1937 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2019 on the protection of persons who report breaches of Union law (the “Directive”) ...
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has announced that the policy it put in place in March of 2020 allowing employers to remotely review Form I-9 employment authorization verification documents during the COVID-19 pandemic will end on July 31, 2023. United States Citizenship and Immigration Services also announced that employers must complete the required physical (in-person) inspection for all Forms I-9 created under the temporary policy no later than August 30, 2023 ...
The Court of Appeal has partially clarified a significant loophole in the Telecoms Code, which was threatening to prevent the redevelopment of some telecommunications sites. The previous iteration of the Telecoms Code was infamously labelled ‘not one of parliament’s better drafting efforts’ by the High Court ...
25 July marks World In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) day (or World Embryologist Day) recognising the day in 1978 the first baby was born following successful IVF treatment. To mark the day, we ask what employers can do to support employees undertaking IVF. Background Louise Joy Brown was the first ever baby in the world to be born following IVF treatment ...
A recent survey conducted by the charity Pregnant Then Screwed, reported that almost a quarter (24%) of women who told their boss about their fertility treatment did not receive any support at work.In vitro fertilization (IVF) can place an emotional, physical and financial stress on women ...
This year, the Federal Trade Commission (the “FTC”) and the Department of Justice (the “DOJ”) have been modifying antitrust guidance related to healthcare, and recently enacted three notable changes. First, the FTC and DOJ jointly issued updated Draft Merger Guidelines (the “Draft Guidelines”) to address the way the agencies evaluate a merger to determine its effect on competition ...
On 10 July 2023 in his Mansion House speech, Chancellor Jeremey Hunt announced the government’s plans to transform the UK’s financial services sector. The announcement was followed the next day by a raft of consultation documents from the DWP addressing a range of pension reforms aimed at boosting outcomes for pension savers and supporting growth across the wider economy ...
phttps://www.huntonak.com/images/content/9/2/v2/92076/Employee-Benefit-Plan-Review-7.24.23 ...
phttps://www.huntonak.com/images/content/9/2/v2/92157/discrimination-in-a-hightech-world-potential-pitfalls-of-ai-in-e ...
On July 13, 2023, the Cyberspace Administration of China ("CAC"), together with the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Public Security, and the National Radio and Television Administration issued the Interim Measures for Generative Artificial Intelligence Services (the "Interim Measures"), which will come into effect on August 15, 2023 ...
On July 14, 2023, the Ministry of Science and Technology of the PRC ("MOST") issued the Notice on Updating the Guidelines on Administrative Approval Items and the Scope and Procedures for Filing and Prior Reporting of Human Genetic Resources, which unveiled six documents, including the administrative guidelines on collection approval, biobanking approval, exportation approval and international collaboration approval of human genetic resources ("HGRs"), as well as the scope and procedures for int
On 13 July 2023, the UK government planned increases to fees across a range of immigration and nationality routes including the immigration health surcharge. The immigration health surcharge (IHS) is set to see a huge increase of around 66%. The current standard IHS rate is £624 per person per year of leave to remain granted and this will increase to £1,035. Similarly, the discounted rate for students and under-18s will increase from £470 per year to £776 ...
In this article we highlight the most significant employment law cases since April 2023 and the lessons that employers should take from them. Pregnancy discrimination In dismissal situations, the motivation of the decision-maker to dismiss is key rather than the motivation of other employees who may be indirectly involved, as the case of Alcedo Orange Ltd v Ferridge-Gunn demonstrates ...
Today's judgment from the European Court of Justice ("ECJ") in the case Commission v CK Telecoms (C-376/20 P) provides insight into how the EU merger control provisions should be assessed in consolidated markets, such as telecommunications. Understanding the judgment may be relevant for consolidation plans in many industries with tendencies towards oligopoly ...
In a defining moment for the digital economy, Vodafone Germany has recently announced its partnership with Cardano, a public blockchain platform, to launch one of the world’s largest NFT collections. This move by Vodafone demonstrates the growing interest of global telecommunications corporations in embracing blockchain technology and digital assets ...
Sony Interactive Entertainment recently made headlines with the publication of an international patent application to make non-fungible tokens (NFTs) transferable between games and consoles. Despite an initial 2021 popularity boom, 2022 saw a dramatic decline in the trading volumes of NFTs. Whilst the downturn has been touted by some commentators as having “fallen off a cliff”[1], Sony’s patent application may be seen as indicative of a diversification of use-cases for NFTs ...
On 16 June 2023 the High Court handed down its first instance decision in the case of Virgin Media Limited v NTL Pension Trustees II Limited and others, dealing with the impact on amendments affecting contracted out rights of failing to obtain a section 37 certificate ...
We look at the latest events concerning the dispute between the UK Covid-19 Inquiry and the Cabinet Office over the former Prime Minister’s WhatsApp messages and diaries ...
With skills shortages increasing across multiple sectors and widespread productivity levels reportedly declining, many organisations are looking to develop the skills of their existing workforce and the wider talent pool ...
