On 1 January, the Fourth Bureaucracy Relief Act (Viertes Bürokratieentlastungsgesetz – “BEG IV”) came into effect. This legislation introduces significant changes to requirements around the form of contracts in Germany with the objective of simplifying certain administrative processes, among them the completion of employment contracts.
What is the status quo?
Until the end of last…
On New Year’s Eve, many were focused on celebrating the arrival of whatever 2025 may bring, but behind the scenes the Home Office introduced some significant changes to immigration policy. These updates have been quietly implemented as part of the government’s ongoing ‘crackdown’ on alleged abuse of the UK immigration system, but some could have far-reaching…
In today’s rapidly evolving technological landscape, smartwatches and other wearable technology devices have progressed past being a great holiday gift for your family member with the perennial New Year’s resolution to hit the gym and are increasingly prevalent in the workplace. These devices, ranging from smartwatches to powered gloves, can enhance employee productivity and improve…
Most employers that have gone through a large-scale layoff or closed a location will tell you that WARN is their most dreaded four-letter word. Now, with the continuing and even increasing prevalence of post-COVID remote work arrangements, the question of who to WARN of mass layoffs of closures has become even more daunting.
The federal…
The Home Office has been very busy in 2024, making significant changes to the Immigration Rules almost every month this year.
We have published a timeline of the most notable changes that sponsoring employers should be aware of.
As the year draws to a close, we expect 2025 to present further immigration law developments…
The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), which became effective in June 2023, requires covered employers to provide job-related accommodations to employees for work limitations they experience due to pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions. (See our prior coverage here.) Since the PWFA’s enactment, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued regulations explaining employer…
Here are another couple of questions that were raised in our recent webinar on Managing Sickness Absence, plus our outline answers.
If an employee always uses their full sickness allowance but never goes over this, can we still have meetings and issue warnings, even if there is no evidence of an underlying medical condition?
Yes,…
The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides job-protected, unpaid time off to certain U.S. employees for pregnancy, childbirth or adoption or during periods of personal or family illness. One basis upon which eligible employees can take FMLA leave is to care for a family member with a serious health condition, but the language of…
Here are a couple more of the questions – and our outline answers – following our recent webinar on Managing Sickness Absence.
What advice would you give where an employee wants to return to work but the employer does not think they are able to?
If an employer has concerns about an employee’s fitness to…
