On 7 October 2019, the EU Council formally adopted the new Whistleblowing Directive that will guarantee whistleblowers EU-wide standards of protection. The Directive obliges both public and private organisations and authorities to set up secure reporting channels, so that whistleblowers can report violations of EU law as safely as possible. Member States have two years
In light of the upcoming federal election – currently scheduled for October 21, 2019 – this is a timely reminder for employers on their statutory obligations to provide employees with time off from work so that employees may exercise their constitutionally-protected right to vote on polling day. Voter eligibility under the Canada Elections Act,
During a business trip to a construction site, an employee was found dead of a heart attack in a room after having had sexual intercourse with a “complete stranger” he met during the day. The employer completed the usual formalities by informing the social security authorities of the death and the circumstances. The social security
As part of the UK’s Government’s “Good Work Plan” to ensure fair and decent work for all, transparency and clarity of workers’ rights and effective enforcement of those rights, proposals for a single enforcement body were published for consultation in July this year.
Currently in the UK, the majority of employment rights are enforced by
The basic working time arrangement in France is 35 hours per week, and although there are a number of alternative working time arrangements potentially available, this is still the one that applies to the majority of French employees. However, this is not a maximum working week – employees working beyond that amount are entitled to
Since 2015, Queensland’s resources industry has been shaken by the re-emergence of dust lung diseases, largely among the State’s large coal mining workforce. So far, more than 130 workers have been diagnosed with incurable forms of lung disease across Australia, resulting in 6 Queensland deaths in the past 12 months.[1] The State Government has responded to the outbreak with a raft of reforms designed to identify the risk, support affected workers and enhance prevention, detection and reporting.
With a range of reforms implemented, Queensland has now turned to ongoing regulation of the industry with the introduction of the new Resources Safety and Health Queensland Bill 2019 (RSHQ Bill) into the Legislative Assembly.
The introduction of the RSHQ Bill stems from 68 recommendations made by the Coal Workers’ Pneumoconiosis Select Committee in Queensland. During the review, other deadly dust diseases were identified as also requiring a regulatory response.
The Committee made a range of recommendations, including that the Queensland Government should establish an independent regulatory body to regulate the Workplace Health and Safety in the resources sector. Currently, this responsibility rests with the Department of Natural Resources, Mines and Energy (DNRME) and sits separately from the Regulator under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld) (WHS Act). The Committee’s recommendation, which will be implemented by the RSHQ Bill, seeks to implement a degree of independence in the area of safety and health regulation, from other government functions.