Plans for Flexible Parental Leave Unveiled
The UK Government's latest employment law consultation paper, Consultation on Modern Workplaces (PDF), sets out plans to introduce a new system of flexible, shared parental leave. This would build upon the Government's decision earlier this year to implement the previous Labour administration's legislation on additional paternity leave with effect from April 2011.
Other proposals covered by the consultation include:
- Extending the right to request flexible working to all employees.
- Amendments to the Working Time Regulations 1998 (WTR) relating to annual leave entitlement and its interplay with sickness absence.
- Mandatory equal pay audits for employers who are found by an Employment Tribunal to have discriminated on grounds of sex in relation to pay.
Holidays Falling on Days Off
Effective 1 January 2011 employers will not have to grant a day off for a holiday which falls on a Saturday or another free day resulting from the work schedule. Currently, when a holiday falls on such a free day, it must be compensated for with another day off granted to employees. The change results from an amendment to Art. 130 of the Labour Code. "In exchange" for this the employees get an additional statutory day off - Epiphany, on 6 January.
Prince Edward Island Amends Employment Standards Act
Bill 2 (pdf), the Employment Standards Amendment Act, 2009, which amends Prince Edward Island's Employment Standards Act, came into force on October 1, 2010. Among other things, the Bill:
- Increases vacation entitlement after eight years of service;
- Increases paid sick leave after ten years of service;
- Adds one day of paid bereavement leave; and
- Enhances maternity, paternity and adoption leaves.
European Court of Justice Finds Spain's Breastfeeding Leave Statute Inconsistent with Equal Treatment Directive
Under Spanish Law, employed mothers shall be entitled, for the purpose of feeding an unweaned child under nine months of age, to take an hour off during each workday. In addition, the relevant law points out that breastfeeding leave may be taken by the mother or the father without distinction, provided that they are both employed (Section 37.4 Workers´ Statute).
The case in dispute derives from this last legal statement, whose interpretation has brought much confusion regarding breastfeeding before the Spanish labour courts. In the case considered, the employer rejected a male worker's request to enjoy such leave because the mother of the child was not employed, but self-employed. The High Court of Justice of Galicia wonders whether the right to leave should not be accorded to men in the same way as women, and whether the fact of restricting it to employed women and the fathers of their children is not a discriminatory measure contrary to the principle of equal treatment and to Directive 76/2007.
Continue Reading...Russian Government Considers the Draft Federal Law Regarding ILO Paid Leaves Convention
The draft federal law "On ratification of the Convention N 132 "On paid leaves" of the International Labor Organization" is now under consideration of the Government of the Russian Federation.
The Convention was adopted on June 24, 1970 and stipulates the main rights of individuals on guaranteed annual paid leave. According to the provisions of the Convention, each member of the International Labor Organization upon its ratification is obliged to establish a minimal term of paid annual leave as well as the categories of employees it shall apply to. Therefore the draft federal law on ratification of the Convention envisages that the guaranteed annual paid leave in Russia comprises 28 calendar days and is applicable to the employees both of agricultural and non-agricultural economic sectors.
The currently effective legislation of the Russian Federation complies with the Convention. But the Government intends to ratify it in order to constitute Russian legislation basing on universally recognized norms of labor law which serve as the basis for all national labor laws.
The World Cup's Impact in the Workplace
On June 11, the world's largest sporting event - the World Cup - will begin its month-long series of games in South Africa. This football competition (soccer, to Americans), which takes place every four years, will no doubt dominate the attention and water cooler conversations of sports fans in every workplace. The games are scheduled to be broadcast in the United States between 7:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. ET, which is the entire work day for most industries. As a result, U.S. employers will face certain challenges in maintaining productivity, limiting absenteeism, and preserving civility in the workplace.
For example, employers should be prepared for the possibility of more frequent requests for days/time off, as well as unscheduled absences. It would behoove employers to review their absence and vacation/paid leave policies in anticipation of the World Cup, and to determine in advance how strictly these policies will be enforced during the event. Also, employees may spend a great deal of time watching the games via their computers, which not only impacts productivity, but also network bandwidth. Employers that monitor personal Internet use should remind employees of this practice.
Continue Reading...Employment Newsnotes (Issue 48, Spring 2010)
LS Newsnotes Issue 48 Spring 2010
(PDF) is an occasional publication by
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The potential implications of a Conservative government for employment law
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Bullying and harassment in the workplace
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Tribunal and court decisions rewriting
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A successful age discrimination claim by a middle-aged employee
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Severe weather: employment law issues
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Serial litigants in employment tribunals
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Employment of children
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Scope of the right to claim discrimination on grounds of 'philosophical belief'
New Right for Employees to Request Time Off for Training
A new right to request time off to undertake study or training will be available to employees working in businesses in the UK employing 250 or more people, with effect from 6 April 2010. The law will be extended to all organisations, regardless of size, from April 2011.
Continue Reading...Regulations on Equal Treatment for Agency Workers Finalised
The Agency Workers Regulations 2010, implementing the EC Temporary Agency Workers Directive (2008/104/EC) have been put before the UK Parliament, although they will not come into force until October 2011. The Regulations provide all employment agency workers with a right to equal treatment in basic working and employment conditions with their directly employed counterparts after 12 weeks in a given job.
Continue Reading...Holiday Pay on Holiday Pay? The "Snowball" Effect Confirmed by the Supreme Court
On 29 June 2009, the Belgium Supreme Court issued an important
judgment (pdf) concerning holiday pay of employees whose remuneration is (partially) variable. The question was the following: Does the single holiday pay on the variable remuneration of the employee and which is paid during the year X, have to be taken into account in the basis of calculation of the holiday pay of the year X + 1?
Continue Reading...