US employers get the green light to offer incentives for COVID-19 vaccinations: what are the rules?

New guidance from the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission gives the go-ahead to employers to offer incentives to employees to get vaccinated and provide educational material to encourage vaccination, under certain conditions. The new guidance On 28 May 2021, the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) updated its guidance relating to employers’ obligations and limitations in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic in the workplace. Most notably, the…

Fair Pay Agreements are coming to New Zealand in 2022: what will change for employers?

The New Zealand Government has announced it is proceeding with a new Fair Pay Agreement system with implementation in 2022. Fair Pay Agreements (FPAs) aim to create industry-wide pay deals setting minimum standards for all employees and employers within that industry. FPAs would be bargained between unions and employer groups.  What does the new FPA system look like? Under the new legislation, FPA negotiations could be…

EU immigration to the UK after Brexit: what you need to know about EU Settlement Scheme deadlines

The main post-Brexit EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) deadline is looming on 30 June 2021, however there are other deadlines and considerations that applicants and their employers in the UK may not be aware of. In this article we highlight a selection of issues that relate to the main deadline, or that will start to have practical implications after 30 June 2021. Main EU Settlement Scheme…

India’s labour reforms: what will change and what happens next?

In this article first published in the India Business Law Journal, VIjay Ravi of Ius Laboris firm Kochhar & Co analyses the key provisions of four new Indian Labour Codes relating to wages and employment conditions, social security, trade unions and occupational health. The scales of justice reflect the challenges facing law-makers in the context of labour and employment laws. Balancing the interests of employers…

Flexible working and the right to ask: a guide for employers in the UK

This article summarises the right to ask for flexible working in the UK and explains how discrimination law applies in this context. Introduction Employees seeking a better balance between the demands of work and personal life may seek a change in their working arrangements, for example, through part-time working, job-sharing or a change in working hours.   While there is no right to insist on working in…

Posted workers: Austria implements the Directive but only for the construction industry

The Austrian legislator has implemented the Posting of Workers Directive (2018/957), however, only for the construction industry. This became effective from 1 April 2021. ‘Non-genuine’ postings, i.e. the employment of workers with their usual place of work in Austria, if the employment is exercised for an employer with its registered office outside Austria (this definition is not set out in the Posted Workers Directive, therefore…

Where can an employee sue an employer? A recent ruling and its implications for Austrian law

The European Court of Justice has ruled that an employee living in Austria has to bring a legal action against the employer with whom she had an employment contract in Germany, because the main part of her contractual obligations had to be performed in Germany, even if no work was actually performed. A recent European Court of Justice ruling (25 February 2021; C–804/19, Markt24) has clarified the law on where…

EuGH entscheidet: Ist Rufbereitschaft Arbeitszeit oder Ruhezeit?

Arbeitgeber und Arbeitnehmer streiten sich nicht selten um die Einstufung von einem – wie auch immer gearteten – Bereitschaftsdienst als „Arbeitszeit“ oder „Ruhezeit“. In zwei parallelen Vorabentscheidungsverfahren (C-344/19 und C-580/19) hat der EuGH am 9. März 2021 nunmehr erneut über die Einstufung von Rufbereitschaft entschieden. Rufbereitschaft ist demnach nur in Ausnahmefällen „Arbeitszeit“. Wir zeigen, worum es in den Entscheidungen ging, welche Vorgaben der EuGH gemacht…

A guide to hair discrimination laws and their impact on employer grooming codes in the US

This review of legislation and case law on hair and hair styling in the workplace in the US looks at recent state and federal anti-discrimination initiatives and gives guidance to employers on how to adapt their dress code and grooming policies. Executive summary Many have said that the workplace tends to be society’s battlefield, where culture wars play out and emerging trends go up against long-established…

Der „Brexit“ ist vollzogen: Was deutsche Arbeitgeber und UK-Arbeitnehmer nun beachten sollten

Nach langwierigen Verhandlungen um einen Brexit-Deal ist das Vereinigte Königreich mit Ablauf des 31. Januar 2020 aus der Europäischen Union ausgetreten. In unserer Blogbeiträgen vom 21. Februar 2020 und vom 28. November 2019 haben wir bereits über mögliche Konsequenzen des Brexit für Arbeitgeber und über den Aufenthalt und Arbeitsmarktzugang von UK-Staatsbürgern in Deutschland berichtet. Seit dem 1. Januar 2021 ist nun auch die sog. Übergangsphase,…