February 2018

Technology is ever-changing, and while in the past evidence of an employee’s misconduct was based mainly on “physical” witnesses and observations, employers might now be tempted to use data obtained through social media as evidence against their employees.

At the present time the French Supreme Court has not had many occasions to clarify the manner in which evidence obtained by French employers through the Facebook website (and more particularly on the “wall” of an individual) should be treated by the courts.

As we are all aware, the news has been populated with stories concerning allegations of sexual harassment and misconduct, particularly in the entertainment and media industries as well as government institutions. These stories have contributed to the “#MeToo” movement, which originated on Twitter and other social media websites in late 2017 and has since become a widespread message on social media encouraging individuals to share their stories and speak out against sexual harassment and abuse. But while its purposes are laudable, the #MeToo movement is a touchy subject for employers, who ever-more-frequently find themselves accused of sexual harassment or other misconduct on social media and must grapple with the implications of publicly aired grievances.

Le calcul des subventions qui doivent être allouées au comité d’entreprise (qu’il s’agisse de la subvention de fonctionnement, ou la contribution aux activités sociales et culturelles) est un casse-tête chinois pour les entreprises depuis plusieurs années déjà.

Ce casse-tête a été partiellement résolu par les ordonnances portant réforme du Code du travail qui ont prévu…

The recent case of Apostolides v Mantina Earthmovers & Constructions Pty Ltd [2018] FCCA 279 serves as a useful reminder to ensure that your organisation’s award or agreement covered casual employees are “engaged and paid as such”.

In this case the Federal Circuit Court determined that an employee whom the employer purported was a casual…

It is often a challenge for employers to determine whether they have a duty to accommodate an employee’s “family status” under human rights legislation.  Adjudicators across Canada have taken different approaches to assess whether the duty to accommodate family status has been triggered.  The recent B.C. Human Rights Tribunal decision in Adair v. Forensic Psychiatric …

The Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) has recently released further guidance material in relation to its interpretation of, and likely enforcement approach towards, the freedom of association provision within the Building Code 2013 (Code 2013) and Code for Tendering and Performance of Building Work 2016 (Code 2016).

The freedom of association provisions within both Code 2013 and Code 2016 require building contractors and other building industry participants to adopt policies which ensure that persons are:

  • free to become, or not become, members of industrial associations;
  • free to be represented, or not represented, by industrial associations; and
  • free to participate, or not participate, in lawful industrial activities.

However, the specific requirements with respect to the display of building association logos, mottos and indicia differ between Codes.

More and more organisations are growing their global footprint and need to move their people around the world. In this global environment, it is essential to know, understand and comply with employment and labour laws in place across all of the jurisdictions in which organisations engage people. This will help to protect business from unnecessary…

The Fair Work Commission (FWC) recently handed down a decision[1] which concluded that an Uber driver was not an employee for the purposes of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (FW Act), but an independent contractor, meaning that his unfair dismissal application was dismissed.

The decision, the first of its kind in Australia, only increases the tension between the rise of the gig economy and the traditional indicia courts use to determine the presence of an employment relationship.

There have been recent discussions around the lack of transformation in the financial services industry in South Africa.  This has led to discussions of potentially reviewing and codifying the Financial Sector Charter (FSC) in an effort to fast-track transformation in the workplace and ownership in the financial services sector.

The Financial Sector Charter…