With all the changes to the world of work that we have recently experienced and are continuing to experience, our webinar programme this year is focused on the future of work and in particular the hot topics HR teams are having to handle now in order to future proof their organisations. Our latest seminar focused on whistleblowing and, in particular, how approaches to whistleblowing have changed as a result of the pandemic ...
After months spent collaborating on a loan application and waiting for HUD’s underwriters to judge its merits, the lender and borrower are thrilled to receive the HUD firm commitment, a major milestone on the path to closing. The parties lock the interest rate, draft loan documents, fine-tune title and survey, and assemble the pre-closing submission to HUD ...
The existence of labor protection shields, which limit the number of hours that must make up an ordinary working day, is a common denominator in Central American labor legislations, and in the case of El Salvador, there is even the peculiarity that these limits are expressly determined from the imperative Constitutional Norm, which makes them even more difficult to modify than if they were established in the Secondary Legislation. The Salvadoran Constitution in its Art. 38 Ord ...
Even for those who know that ESG is an acronym for Environmental, Social and Governance there is a lot of subjectivity in the way the term is understood ...
May 24, 2022 By: Charles Whitman On May 23 2022, the California Supreme Court reversed the Second Appellate District Court of Appeal and made clear that meal and rest period premiums (or “extra pay” or “premium pay”)[1] constitute “wages” and must be accurately reflected on an employee’s wage statement and accurately paid to the employee during the employee’s final pay out. (See Naranjo v. Spectrum Security Services, Inc., (2022) 2022 Cal ...
On May 23, 2022, the Oregon Medical Board (OMB) is hosting a public hearing on rules that propose major changes to the way physician assistants (PAs) practice in Oregon. The rules were written in response to House Bill 3036, which supporters have dubbed the “Physician Assistant Modernization Bill.” More broadly, the rules were written in response to mounting concerns about health care access and equity, especially for rural and minority populations ...
May 13, 2022 By: Alexandra Shulman Effective June 9, 2022, Washington State’s Silenced No More Act (the “Act”) will prohibit nondisclosure and nondisparagement provisions regarding illegal acts of discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wage and hour violations, and sexual assault in employment agreements ...
On May 4, 2022, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a Temporary Final Rule (TFR) that increases the automatic extension period for certain Employment Authorization Document (EAD) categories up to 540 days, effective immediately and valid through Oct. 15, 2025. Historically, certain EAD categories were only eligible for an extension up to 180 days. The TFR will help avoid employment gaps for foreign nationals with pending EAD applications ...
Dinsmore labor and employment partner Thaddeus Harrell was published this week by Claims and Litigation Management (CLM) on the topic of navigating a fully in-office, remote or hybrid workforce and the legal considerations that come with each option. An excerpt is below ...
“Another game changer!” — Your takeaway from reading this summary of Washington’s Engrossed Substitute House Bill 1795, commonly known as the “Silenced No More Act,” which becomes law June 9, 2022, and has some important retroactive effects ...
In April 2021, President Biden issued Executive Order 14026 to increase the minimum wage for federal government contractors to $15 per hour. On November 23, 2021, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued its final rule implementing Executive Order 14026. The rule requires any federal “contractor” to pay employees a minimum hourly wage of $15 and overtime wages for work beyond 40 hours per week. This wage is subject to yearly increases determined by DOL ...
As organisations start to rebuild post pandemic, many will be considering the introduction or reintroduction of bonuses to their employees. However, when it comes to payment of bonus to those who have had time away from work, employers need to take care ...
Amy Leech, employment law associate and Shoosmiths’ mental health and wellbeing champion, considers the benefits of having an employee led mental health champion network within your business. As an employer, you will have lots of opportunities to look after your employees’ mental health. However, many organisations are still just paying lip service to it ...
To coincide with Shoosmiths’ ‘The anywhere office - friend or foe to flexible working?’ event on Wednesday 4 May, we speak with Jessica Chivers, CEO at The Talent Keeper Specialists, on the process of returning to work after a period of long leave ...
On 28 March 2022, the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training (“MLVT”) issued Notification 011/22 (“Notification”) to extend the deadline for foreign employee work permit applications from 31 March 2022 to 31 May 2022. The extension is aimed to help foreign employees who are not able to renew or apply for work permit on time in light of the COVID-19 outbreak ...
Developments in light of COVID-19 Unlike previous years, there were no major legislations or government regulations on labor and employment issues in 2021 ...
Ahead of Shoosmiths’ ‘The anywhere office - friend or foe to flexible working?’ event on Wednesday 4 May, we speak with Rachel Maguire and Hannah Hall-Turner, The Job Share Pair, to examine the job share model and its potential benefits. Rachel and Hannah put forward the case for job sharing, while sharing their tips on how to make it a success, with guidance for businesses and employees considering it as an option ...
Following the celebration of #WorldIPDay, we examine the growth of the Nigerian creative industry, identify ways to protect creativity and innovation in Nigeria, and suggestareas of improvement for the protection of IP rights in Nigeria. With the recent surge of #NFTs and other #Web3 affiliated forms of creative content, improvements to the Nigerian IP regime are imperative. Download PDFhere, or continue reading below ...
Dear valued clients, colleagues and friends, On 30 March 2022, the Employment (Amendment) Bill 2021 (“Amended Bill”) was passed in Dewan Negara (Senate). In this update, Vijayan Venugopal and Nur Najehah will outline the key changes and upcoming issues which employers should be aware considering this recent development. At the outset, before diving into the issues, it is important to first understand the present status of the Amended Bill ...
On March 18th, 2022, the Labor Board (hereinafter the “LB”) issued its Regulation No. 2 (hereinafter the “New Regulation”) which replaced Regulation No. 5 of 2009, regarding the requirements and procedure for applying to an exceptional working schedule. The New Regulation became effective on April 1st, 2022 ...
Telework is not a new phenomenon. According to the International Labour Organization, its rise dates back to the 1970s when a major oil crisis prompted many companies to keep their employees at home to reduce their energy consumption1. That said, since the Covid pandemic, teleworking has become widespread. Now, nearly a quarter of Canadian companies (22.5%) expect that 10% or more of their workforce will continue to telework after business is back to normal2 ...
Overview The general counsel is requesting the NLRB find captive audience meetings to constitute an unfair labor practice if the employer fails to provide its employees with assurances against threat of discipline, discharge or other reprisal. The general counsel did not direct the regions to begin issuing administrative complaints against employers who require employees to attend captive audience meetings at this time ...
President Joe Biden has signed into law the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021, which allows an individual asserting sexual assault or sexual harassment claims to bring such claims to court, even if they had previously agreed to mandatory arbitration. Dinsmore employment attorney Aly St. Pierre wrote about what employers need to know about this new law for The Indiana Lawyer. An excerpt is below ...
