Equality Act Implementation Confirmed
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As expected, the GEO has confirmed that most of the Act will come into force on 1 October 2010. However, there are some significant measures over which the Coalition Government is still deliberating. These include:
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The duty on public authorities to take into account 'socio-economic' inequality when making strategic decisions.
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The 'dual discrimination' provisions, which would introduce a right to bring discrimination claims combining two protected characteristics.
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The requirement for employers with 250 or more employees to publish information on their gender pay gap.
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The provisions allowing employers to take positive action, in recruitment and promotion, in favour of members of an under-represented group.
Guidelines Released on the Re-employment of Older Workers in Singapore
The Singapore government intends to introduce re-employment legislation to take effect on 1 January 2012. The Tripartite Committee on Employability of Older Workers was charged with the task of working through the practical aspects of the re-employment legislation and producing guidelines for employers. The guidelines were finalised following a round of public consultation in late 2009.
The guidelines are not legally binding. Rather, they are intended to assist employers and employees to prepare for the implementation of the re-employment legislation in 2012. The guidelines identify good re-employment practices that employers are encouraged to adopt in advance of the legislation coming into effect.
To read more about this development, please click here.
Contributors: George Cooper, Partner, and Celia Yuen, Senior Associate
Legislative Update for the Week of August 16
Laborers' Union to Rejoin the AFL-CIO
Ending a four-year schism, the Laborers' International Union of North America has decided to rejoin the AFL-CIO as of October 1, 2010. Read the full post here. (August 16)
Survey Shows a Decline in Workplace Fatalities
A preliminary report released August 19 by the Bureau of Labor Statistics' National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries indicates that the number of workplace fatalities declined in 2009 from the prior year. Read the full post here. (August 20)
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Legislative Update for the Week of August 9
IRS Provides Form 5500 Guidance for Plans Seeking Special Funding Relief
The Internal Revenue Service has issued two notices explaining that sponsors of single- and multi-employer defined pension plans can still elect funding relief provided by the newly-enacted Preservation of Access to Care for Medicare Beneficiaries and Pension Relief Act. Read the full post here. (August 9)
PBGC Proposes Rule to Clarify its Regulations on Liability for Termination of Single-Employer Plans
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) will issue a proposed rule providing guidance on the applicability and enforcement of section 4062(e) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). Read the full post here. (August 9)
Proposed Rule Would Amend Union Disclosure Form LM-30
The Department of Labor's Office of Labor-Management Standards has published a proposed rule to modify union disclosure Form LM-30 and its instructions. Read the full post here. (August 10)
Bill Would Create Automatic IRA Enrollment Program
A bill introduced in both the House and Senate would establish an automatic individual retirement account (IRA) enrollment program for employees at firms with more than 10 employees that do not already maintain a qualified retirement plan. Read the full post here. (August 13)
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Ontario Proposes Self-Help Employment Standards System
Bill 68, Open for Business Act, 2006 (pdf), has passed second reading in the Legislature. The Bill contains amendments to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 that are intended to streamline the complaint resolution system and reduce the backlog of employment standards complaints.
If passed, the Bill would introduce a self-help model of employment standards complaint resolution. The proposed model would require employees to advise their employers about an employment standards dispute before a formal complaint is accepted by the Ministry of Labour and an officer is assigned to investigate. Certain workers would be excluded from this requirement, including: young workers, live-in personal care workers, employees with disabilities or language barriers, and employees who are afraid of their employer. Critics of the Bill allege that the self-help model will discourage employees from filing employment standards complaints. They point to the 46% decrease in the number of employment standards complaints accepted following the adoption of a similar system (pdf) in British Columbia.
Update on Implementation of the Bribery Act
We have written previously about the UK Bribery Act 2010 - see our earlier note, New Bribery Act - Implications for Employers. The Act was originally expected to be implemented with effect from October this year. However, on 20 July, the UK Ministry of Justice announced that it will come into force in April 2011.
In the meantime, in September 2010, the government will launch a short consultation exercise on the guidance which it intends to produce to assist commercial organisations to put procedures in place to prevent bribery on their behalf. It aims to publish this guidance early in 2011 to give businesses time to get to grips with the legislation and guidance before the Act comes into force.
Legislative Update for the Week of August 2
Senate Confirms Kagan's Supreme Court Nomination
As expected, the Senate on Thursday confirmed by a vote of 63 to 37 the nomination of U.S. Solicitor General Elena Kagan to be the next Supreme Court justice. Read the full post here. (August 5)
Senate Introduces Bill to Amend OSH Act, Improve Miner Safety
The Senate introduced the Robert C. Byrd Mine and Workplace Safety and Health Act of 2010, a bill that - like its House companion bill - would improve mine safety as well as significantly revise the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act. Read the full post here. (August 4)
Recent Developments Regarding Mandatory Retirement Ages in the UK
Removal of Default Retirement Age for Employees
Age discrimination legislation in the UK currently permits employers to retire employees at the age of 65 or older (the default retirement age or "DRA"). The new UK government has announced that it is proposing to phase out the DRA from April 2011, with such retirements ceasing completely on 1 October 2011. After 1 October 2011, employers wanting to retain a retirement age will need to demonstrate that it is "objectively justified" - in other words that it is a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim or aims. The proposals are subject to a consultation that will run from 29 July 2010 until 21 October 2010.
Continue Reading...Legislative Update for the Week of July 26
Financial Reform Bill Establishes Diversity Requirements
The newly enacted Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (P.L. 111-203) contains a provision that will impose diversity requirements on businesses in the financial industry. Read the full post here. (July 30)
Bill Would Apply Minimum Wage, Overtime to Home Care Workers
Rep. Linda Sanchez (D-CA) introduced legislation that would extend the federal minimum wage and overtime protections of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) to most home care workers, improve federal and state data collection and oversight with respect to the direct care workforce, and create a grant program to help states recruit and train direct care workers. Read the full post here. (July 30)
Legislative Update for the Week of July 19
House Committee Approves Miner Safety Bill
The House Committee on Education and Labor approved the Robert C. Byrd Miner Safety and Health Act of 2010, legislation that - in addition to addressing mine safety - would significantly increase employer civil and criminal penalties for violations of the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act, strengthen whistleblower protections, and provide greater rights for victims of accidents and their family members to participate in proceedings under the OSH Act. Read the full post here. (July 23)
MSHA Reporting Obligations in Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act
The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act contains some surprising provisions. Safety and health professionals should note that Miner Safety and Health Act reporting obligations for any covered entity that is a mine operator (or has a subsidiary that is a mine operator) of a "coal or other mine" are included. Read the full post here. (July 23)