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 ...
As we approach COP26 in Glasgow in November, a vast amount of policy development is underway to help develop the strategies we need to address the global climate crisis. A central challenge is changing consumer behaviour, which is a complex and multi-faceted issue. It raises questions around affordability, such as changing heating systems, purchasing zero emissions vehicles and better insulating our homes ...
“We have to hurry, we have to get faster in the fight against climate change.” Those were the words of Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, after surveying the devastation caused by record floods in western Germany in early July. Private transport is one of the world’s biggest sources of greenhouse gases, with emissions rising every year, and the transition to electric vehicles is fundamental in the fight against climate change ...
Arbitration Rules 2021The Asian International Arbitration Centre (“AIAC”) launched its latest edition of the AIAC Arbitration Rules (“AIAC Rules”) on 1 August 2021. The AIAC Arbitration Rules 2021 (“2021 Rules”) streamline proceedings and embrace the needs of a fast evolving disputes climate ...
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 August 18 th , 2021, Law No. 21,362 (the “ Law ”) was published in the Official Gazette. The Law introduces several modifications to different other laws in connection with the labeling, advertisement, and sales of gluten free foodstuff products. Firstly, the Law modifies Law No. 20,606, commonly known as Labeling Law ...
Home Quarantine Now Possible for Ex-Patriates Imagine having the permission to work in a foreign country and yet being unable to do so as you are prohibited from entry. That has been the dilemma faced by many ex patriates who hold Employment Passes but have been unable to enter Malaysia due to the current restrictions in place ...
The Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and Treasury, and the Office of Personnel Management recently issued an Interim Final Rule (IFR) implementing portions of the No Surprises Act enacted in December 2020 ...
Under the GDPR, transfers of personal data are permitted without restriction to countries that the European Commission (the "EC") has assessed as providing an "adequate" standard of protection for personal data. The current list of countries considered "adequate" is Andorra, Argentina, Canada (for commercial organisations), Faroe Islands, Guernsey, Israel, Isle of Man, Japan, Jersey, New Zealand, Switzerland and Uruguay and the United Kingdom ...
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 ...
The cornerstone of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) is access to information. CEQA generally requires local and state government agencies ("lead agencies") overseeing proposed projects to prepare project-related documents assessing potential environmental impacts. These documents inform decision-makers and the public of the project's potential environmental impacts ...
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 ...
On August 6th of 2021, Law No. 21,363 (hereinafter the “Law”) was published in the Official Gazette. The Law introduces modifications to Law No. 19,925 about expenditure, commercialization and production of alcoholic beverages, and other associated Laws, establishing different limitations to the advertising of alcoholic beverages, as well as the obligation of including warnings about harmful consumption in the container of these kind of products ...
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 ...
Last year, we reported on the important decision of the Royal Court of Jersey in April 2020 in Re Grundy [2020] JRC 071, which case our firm presented to the Royal Court and which demonstrated the flexibility of the remedies available under Jersey law where a successful application to set aside the exercise of a fiduciary power on grounds of mistake and/or inadequate deliberation is made (No re-writing history: the flexibility of Jersey’s remedies for mistake and inadequate deliber
In Thailand, each year, there are many projects developed by project developers, both governmental authorities and private entities. Before starting to develop a project, each project developer should not only be aware of commercial factors, but also be aware of the environmental factors of the project. One of the main environmental factors to be considered before starting the construction or operation of a project is the completion of an environmental impact assessment (“EIA“) ...
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”) ...
