Topic: Contracts

The UK Government’s Good Work Plan

(Note: Since drafting this post, the Government has published the consultation documents so a further update will follow.) The UK Government has today (7 February) announced its Good Work Plan (the Plan) in response to the Taylor review of Modern Working Practices published last year which set out a number of recommendations, in particular … Continue reading

Un salarié protégé peut-il contester la rupture conventionnelle homologuée dont il a fait l’objet devant le juge judiciaire ?

By Elodie Grangier on January 30, 2018 Posted in Contracts, Discrimination and harassment, Europe, France

Les salariés protégés (représentants du personnel, délégués ou représentants syndicaux, salariés mandatés, etc.) bénéficient d’un statut particulier, eu égard à leur rôle dans l’entreprise. A ce titre, toute modification, et a fortiori, rupture de leur contrat de travail doit être autorisée par l’inspection du travail. La conclusion d’une rupture conventionnelle homologuée, quand bien même il … Continue reading

Recent developments in French employment law regarding financial institutions: How the French Government wants to enhance Paris’ attractiveness as a global financial place

By Elodie Grangier on January 23, 2018 Posted in Contracts, Europe, France

Apart from certain provisions which may be tailored to the relevant situations negotiated by companies or sectors of business through collective agreements (subject to compliance with a number of basic rules and principles), French employment law does not include any specificities in relation to certain sectors of business. In particular, financial institutions are subject to … Continue reading

What rights does an employer have to suspend an employee in France?

By Elodie Grangier and François Guillon on December 5, 2017 Posted in Contracts, Europe, France

Under French labour law, there are limited circumstances under which employers may suspend employees. One of the main obligations imposed on employers is to provide employees with work to be performed (and obviously to pay them in consideration for their work). Breach of this requirement may be considered as a ground for breach of contract, … Continue reading

French employment code reform: Focus on economic dismissals

By Elodie Grangier and François Guillon on November 6, 2017 Posted in Contracts, Europe, France

French President Emmanuel Macron has signed five ordinances making important changes to several aspects of the French employment code. The ordinances, which were immediately published in the French Official Journal on September 23rd, 2017, are aimed in particular at providing employers more flexibility and predictability in labour-management relations. Several provisions of this ambitious reform (the … Continue reading

Where should an employment dispute be litigated when an employer’s business and an employee’s residence are located in different jurisdictions?

By Joseph Palmieri (Toronto) on November 1, 2017 Posted in Canada, Contracts, North America

Where an employer hires an employee who resides in a different jurisdiction, the jurisdiction in which an employment dispute is litigated depends largely on where the employer carries on business. In Koutros v. Persico USA, 2017 ONSC 3001, the employer, Persico USA Inc. (“Persico”) terminated the employment of Savvas Koutros, who was a General Manager … Continue reading

French employment code reform: Focus on dismissal procedure and indemnity

By Elodie Grangier and François Guillon on October 30, 2017 Posted in Contracts, Europe, France

French President Emmanuel Macron has signed five ordinances making important changes to several aspects of the French employment code. The ordinances, which were published in the French Official Journal on September 23rd, 2017, are aimed in particular at providing employers more flexibility and predictability in managing labour relations. Several provisions of this ambitious reform (the … Continue reading

French employment code reform: Focus on homeworking

By Elodie Grangier and François Guillon on October 23, 2017 Posted in Contracts, Europe, France

Beware of repudiating the employment contract of an employee who intends to jump ship and join your competitor

By Shannon Walker on October 16, 2017 Posted in Asia Pacific, Australia, Contracts

Your employee resigns to join your arch rival. You’re not worried because you know you have ‘water tight’ post-employment restraints in the contract of employment. But, if in reacting to the employee’s untimely resignation, you breach the contract and this breach amounts to a repudiation of the contract, then your restraints will be unenforceable. This … Continue reading

Use of social media in France: Employee’s rights and obligations

By Elodie Grangier and François Guillon on October 2, 2017 Posted in Contracts, Data privacy and GDPR, Europe, France

The impact of the use of social media in the workplace has regularly given rise to controversies and debates as how this subject is to be handled by a company’s management. The current state of employment law is still not entirely settled in this respect. It is however possible to provide some guidance on the … Continue reading

Significant changes to French employment code to enter into force no later than January 1st, 2018

By Elodie Grangier on October 2, 2017 Posted in Contracts, Europe, France

Restrictive covenants in UK contracts of employment

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on September 29, 2017 Posted in Contracts, UK

In the UK, a post termination restrictive covenant will be void for being in restraint of trade unless the employer has a legitimate business interest to protect and the protection sought is no more than is reasonable to protect that interest. The interests which can be protected are clients, staff, and confidential information. One type … Continue reading

Record number of mutual termination agreements signed in France

By Elodie Grangier and François Guillon on August 18, 2017 Posted in Contracts, Europe, France

According to the data published by the French labour administration, mutual termination agreements (ruptures conventionnelles) have never been so popular. Indeed, in June 2017, more than 35,700 mutual terminations agreements have been validated by the French labour Administration. But why are mutual termination agreements so popular? First, mutual termination agreements represent – for the employer and … Continue reading

The (latest) reform of the French employment code is ongoing

By Elodie Grangier and Camille Chabrolin on August 11, 2017 Posted in Contracts, Europe, France

As part of candidate Emmanuel Macron’s program during the Presidential elections campaign, a substantial reform of the French employment Code was promised. After his election as President, French commentators anticipated new changes would be implemented quickly, given Emmanuel Macron’s indications that he wished to go ahead as soon as possible, without too much debate before … Continue reading

ContractorCheck Canada App

By Patrick Galizia and Philippe Bélisle on July 14, 2017 Posted in Canada, Contracts

Employee or contractor? The ContractorCheck Canada application (App) is a practical tool developed by the Norton Rose Fulbright employment and labour team. It is designed to help employers accurately determine the status of their workforces and whether they should be considered contractors or employees. Defining employees versus contractors can be sometimes challenging; improperly classifying them … Continue reading

Modern Workplaces – Wide ranging recommendations in the Taylor Report

By Amanda Sanders (UK) on July 14, 2017 Posted in Contracts, Europe, UK

The long awaited Taylor Review of Modern Working Practices was published on 11 July. The recommendations from the review throw some interesting questions into the mix. The general theme is the need for an adaptable, consistent and protected community in which employment and security of workers can prosper. It will be interesting to see how … Continue reading

Le devoir de vigilance : une obligation renforcée

By Elodie Grangier on April 3, 2017 Posted in Contracts, Europe, France

L’obligation de vigilance est une obligation faite aux entreprises de prévenir les risques sociaux, environnementaux et de gouvernance lié à leurs activités. La loi du 27 mars 2017 relative au devoir de vigilance des sociétés mères et des entreprises donneuses d’ordre, publiée le 28 mars 2017 au Journal Officiel, renforce l’obligation de vigilance. Le devoir … Continue reading

A new duty of care for the most significant companies in France

By Elodie Grangier on April 3, 2017 Posted in Contracts, Europe, France

The duty of care is an obligation for companies to prevent social, environmental and governance risks related to their activities. A very recent law published on 28th March 2017 has reinforced such duty of care. The duty of care concerns French companies employing, at the end of 2 consecutive fiscal years, at least 5,000 employees … Continue reading

Update regarding protection against religion-based discrimination in France

By Elodie Grangier on February 16, 2017 Posted in Contracts, Discrimination and harassment, Europe, France

In France, the issue of religious behavior in the workplace is extremely sensitive. The principle under French employment law is that while public sector employers are required to enforce a policy of strict neutrality, in private sector companies, a balance must be maintained between the principle of secularism and the prohibition of discrimination based on … Continue reading

Key employment law developments expected in 2017

By Jannis Breitschwerdt on February 9, 2017 Posted in Contracts, General, Germany

A significant amount of new employment legislation is expected or is already in place for 2017. Key changes will be in the hiring of temporary workers through an agency (referred to as “personnel leasing” in Germany), employee protection and equal treatment. Reform of laws regarding personnel leasing One of the main developments in 2017 will … Continue reading

Where winning is everything: the renewal of fixed-term contracts in professional sports

By Karen Ainslie (ZA) on December 8, 2016 Posted in Contracts, General, South Africa

This article was written by Lee Crisp, an Associate at Norton Rose Fulbright South Africa Fixed term contracts are favoured by employers in the sports industry. As professional sport is heavily performance driven, fixed term contracts give employers a measure of flexibility in contracting with employees. While fixed-term contracts have benefits, both employees and employers … Continue reading

Courts Continue to Chip Away at Restrictive Covenants

By William J. Armstrong on November 21, 2016 Posted in Canada, Contracts

Powell River Industrial Sheet Metal Contracting Inc. (P.R.I.S.M.) v Kramchynski, 2016 BCSC 883, is a decision from the Supreme Court of British Columbia that dealt with the enforcement of a restrictive covenant in the context of a commercial transaction. The decision stands for the proposition that a court may refuse to enforce a restrictive covenant … Continue reading

What rights and protections are there for part-time workers?

By Stefanie Radina on November 7, 2016 Posted in Contracts, Europe, Germany

This post was also contributed by Dimitri Schaff, Trainee, Norton Rose Fulbright LLP (Munich). Currently, about one quarter of all employment relationships in Germany are based on part-time models, the proportion of part-time to full-time employees having increased by about 12 per cent since 2001. Furthermore, as a result of the implementation of the EU Part-time Workers … Continue reading

Zero hour contracts in Italy

By Attilio Pavone on October 21, 2016 Posted in Contracts, Italy

Back in 2003, with the objective of giving employers and employees maximum flexibility to agree to working relations, the so-called zero hour contract, also known informally as “job on call,” was formally introduced into the Italian employment law regime. Under these contracts, the employee agrees to be available to work for the employer only at … Continue reading