by Julie Galbraith, Partner, Head of Employment & Labour Law at Eversheds Sutherland LLP
Elections around the world have been a feature of 2024, with many important elections still to come this year. The results of the elections that have taken place to date have driven many of the new and anticipated developments that have been seen during the last quarter. In addition, business transformation, including workforce reorganisations, has been a recent focus for many global businesses, with a number of new laws and major court decisions being seen this quarter that may impact such exercises.
Also featured in this update is a decision by a Dubai court which has for the first time recognised cryptocurrency as a valid form of salary payment, the last of the EU Member States now transposing the Whistleblowing Directive, broad amendments to the law in Mauritius that include a new legal framework for the employment of migrant workers by labour contractors, as well as global developments around equality in the workplace, the use of restrictive covenants in employment, collective bargaining rights and flexible working.
Keeping appraised of new legal developments and maintaining visibility of those on the horizon continues to be critical for those planning and managing people strategies. Drawing on the significant experience and expertise of our teams of lawyers around the world assisting clients with all aspects of employment law, this latest Update provides a summary of the key changes.
Contractual employment documents
The weight that may be given to contractual language, and the importance of clear and reasonable drafting and adherence to statutory requirements in contractual employment documents, has been highlighted in a number of significant court decisions this quarter. Businesses considering workforce exercises where the contractual position of employment rights and obligations may influence the strategy should take note of such developments.
In Hong Kong, the District Court refused to enforce a two-year post-termination restrictive covenant against a junior employee, emphasising the importance of tailoring the drafting of covenants to the individual circumstances. In the Netherlands, the Court of Appeal ruled that amendments to restrictive covenants agreed in a settlement agreement must comply with the general legal requirements for such covenants, including the obligation to include a motivation in the case of fixed term employment. And in the UK, the Supreme Court upheld an injunction to prevent an employer proceeding with measures to remove a pay enhancement which had been agreed as a “permanent” contractual entitlement.
Equality in the workplace and new family-friendly rights
Equality in the workplace continues to be a global theme. In addition to ongoing global developments that seek to support and enhance the right to equality of pay and protect against workplace harassment and other forms of discrimination, the last quarter has seen many jurisdictions focus on increased support and protections for disabled workers. The importance of such reforms is highlighted by a new report by the International Labour Organisation, which found that workers with disabilities receive, on average, 12% less pay an hour than their co-workers.
In this update we report on a new law in Lithuania that ensures that disabled employees may be scheduled for night work and/or for overtime only with their consent and provided that such work is not medically prohibited, together with an amendment to the law in the Czech Republic aimed at strengthening support for disabled employees through the use of monetary contributions based on the percentage of disabled employees in the workforce. In the UK, the new government proposes to introduce mandatory disability pay gap reporting and to enshrine in law the full right to equal pay for disabled people.
The enhancement of family-friendly rights has also been a feature this quarter. Developments have included the proposed strengthening of protection for employees taking parental leave (Czech Republic), the creation of a new right to birth leave (France), enhancements to parent’s leave entitlement (Ireland), the exemption of single parents from any mandatory obligation to complete night shifts (Romania), extended paternity leave and a new shared parental leave scheme (Singapore) and proposals including enhanced adoption leave rights, the introduction of an entitlement to nursing breaks for returning female employees, enhanced financial protection for employees who are dismissed during maternity / adoptive leave, and the introduction of paternity leave (UAE)
About the author
Julie Galbraith is a Partner in the Employment Law Department at Eversheds Sutherland LLP. Julie advises clients on all aspects of the employment relationship from recruitment to termination. She works with public and private sector clients on contentious and non-contentious employment issues to deliver on the business needs of our clients. Julie advises HR, legal and business teams on a multitude of day-to-day and strategic issues such as disciplinary, grievance, performance management, equality, data protection, TUPE and termination of employment matters.
