The rocky road travelled by the Agency Workers Directive since 2002 is nearing its end as a final version has been approved in Europe. After six years on the back burner, a slightly revised version of the Directive has been adopted. It is no longer ...
News of a revised Agency Workers Directive is still awaited from Europe and is unlikely to emerge before early 2009. For the time being, employers and agency workers alike are in the dark as to how equality of employment rights for agency worke...
The statutory sick pay scheme has historically excluded individuals who work under a contract of three months or less duration. This exclusion from qualification for statutory sick pay (SSP) was removed for fixed term employees in 2002 when employme...
Reaction to last week’s announcement that agency workers are to be given equal employment rights to comparable permanent employees after 12 weeks service, has been swift but also mixed (see View Details..
The Dti has, this week, announced plans to introduce a series of measures designed to give greater protection to certain agency workers. The proposals follow the publication of a green paper by the European Commission, in which it vows to look again...
The block exemption provides a safe harbour from the prohibition on anti-competitive agreements contained in Article 81(1) EC. It can apply to any agreement between parties at different levels of the supply chain where that agreement contains rest...
Nearly all the remaining provisions of the Companies Act 2006 came into force on 1 October. How does this affect you? Any reference to the Companies Act 1985 in your documentation will need to be up...
As the countdown towards the scheduled introduction of the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) in April 2010 continues, the Environment Agency is due to issue its CRC qualification packs to any business that has at least one half-hourly electricity me...
The Advocate-General (AG) to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has issued his opinion in response to several claims in France against internet giant Google, relating to the operation of its search-related advertising service Adwords. Google's Adw...
Franchising is an often underestimated sector of the South African economy. With millions of South Africans seeking employment, small business is positioned...
We have notified you in an earlier e-briefing of additional powers being granted to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) to take enforcement action against breaches of the Data Protection Act (DPA). A new power to is...
Franchise systems typically include clauses that limit or exclude liability as a means of managing risk between the franchisor and franchisee and between the franchise business and its customers. Clauses that exclude or limit liability are a regular ...
The courts continue to be asked by franchisees to limit the scope of their post termination restrictive covenants. It is becoming key for franchisors to show that the duration of their restrictions reflect the time that it would...
In the UK, the first owner of a copyright work is the author, unless the work is created by an employee in the course of their employment. In that case, the copyright will belong to the employer unless the parties have agreed otherwise (eg between u...
The Criminal Justice and Immigration Act, which received royal assent on 8 May 2008, introduces a new section into the Act allowing the IC to impose a fine where there has been a serious breach of the eight data protection 'principles' set out in th...
Franchising is expanding Our franchising team is currently working on a number of exciting new instructions. Most of these have an international flavour and it is clear that franchising is now the major way to build brands in other countries. Our ...
New filing and information disclosure rules relating to franchising regimes in China came into effect on 1 May 2007. Following the implementation of these rules a clearer franchise regime has come into shape in China. The Filing Rules The Fi...
Introduction The long-awaited regulations on the Administration of Commercial Franchise Operations (the 'New Regulations') were promulgated by the State Council of the PRC on 6 February 2007, and will take effect on 1 May 2007. They apply equally t...
Moldova We are providing more detail on Moldova as the provisions in many respects are quite unusual to an extent which makes one wonder how much the draftsman understood franchising. Moldova's approach has been to provide a Chapter i...
Editorial Last year we devoted an issue of Franchising Focus to the international market place in view of the increasing interest in cross border franchising and in global growth by so many systems. There have been a number of changes in the la...
For one who is contemplating becoming a self employed business person for the first time, there is more to consider than 'the franchise'. The franchise is merely a method of establishing a business. Of course one has to consider many ...
In Germany, the provision of temporary personnel is strictly regulated by the German Temporary Employment Act (“AÜG”). The principle is straightforward: the agency is the employer and supplies the temporary employees to the hirer. A...
In light of the significant influence...
From Wednesday 26 March 2014 WorldBridge will no longer be providing visa services for applicants applying for a UK visa from the US. The visa processing service, which until how has been provided by WorldBridge, will be provided by VFS Global from ...
Precis Having inherited the Agency Workers Regulations 2010 on taking office, the UK Government had pledged to review them. That process is now underway but it seems the EU may pip the Government to the post, having conducted its own review of the ...
Having inherited the Agency Workers Regulations 2010 on taking office, the UK Government had pledged to review them. That process is now underway but it seems the EU may pip the Government to the post, having conducted its own review of the parent D...
Today, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has handed down its decision in the case of KHS AG v Winfried Schulte, an important case about whether a worker on long term sick leave has the right to carry forward annual leave accrue...
The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has confirmed that workers are only entitled to holiday pay under regulation 16 of the Working Time Regulations 1998 (WTR) when they actually exercise their right to take the leave in question. The EAT made...
In difficult economic times employers will inevitably look to reduce the costs of employment. However, achieving this in practice can be fraught with legal, practical and also emotive issues. In some circumstances contractual change may be achieved ...
The Bribery Act 2010 will come in to force this Friday, 1 July 2011. Much has been written about its likely implications. At the start of the debate, it would even be fair to say there was a degree...
Today, a consultation has been launched on government plans to: View Details..
After many months of speculation and delay, the Ministry of Justice published Government Guidance in respect of the Bribery Act 2010 last week, paving the way for the Act coming in to force on 1 July. Although, as the name suggests, the Act is aime...
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has revealed that the right to request flexible work arrangements will not be extended to parents of 17 year olds in April as previously announced. Contrary to some reports, the existing law p...
The ICO has announced its first use of its recent power to issue fines or monetary penalties for serious breaches of the data protection legislation. The power became effective in April 2010 (see View Details..
The Scottish Court of Session has ruled that employers are permitted to schedule leave under the Working Time Regulations (WTR) and Working Time Directive (WTD) so that it falls at a time an employee would not otherwise be working...
A new ruling from the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) suggests fathers who take advantage of new rights to extended paternity leave from April next year could be entitled to the same rights and benefits from their employer as women who...
The EU Commission has today taken the first step towards a comprehensive review of the Working Time Directive (WTD). This is despite last year's failure to agree changes to the treatment of on-call time or amendments to the 48 hou...
The Department for Work and Pensions has confirmed that GP sick notes are to be replaced by 'fit notes' with effect from 6 April 2010. The Government consulted on the design and content of the new medical certificate last ...
Today, the EAT has handed down its decision in the case of Lyons v Mitie Security Limited, which involved a claim for holiday pay from an employee whose request to take annual leave did not comply with notice requireme...
At a meeting this week the European Council agreed to extend the existing right for parents to take leave from work from three to four months per parent, per child. The European Council's decision comes as no surprise as t...
Today, the Government’s proposals regarding apprenticeships and training have received Royal Assent in the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009. One of the Act’s provisions in particular is of relevance to all employer...
The recruitment practices of many employers stand to be significantly affected by the introduction, from October 12 this year, of the new vetting and barring scheme for those working with children or vulnerable adults. The scheme will apply in Engla...
After the recent flurry of headlines announcing that long-standing uncertainty surrounding the extension of maternity pay and paternity rights was over, the Government has this week published details of its plans in the form of draft regulations. T...
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled that workers who go on sick leave during a period that has been scheduled as annual leave for the purposes of the Working Time Directive should be allowed to reschedule their holidays, even if that means...
25 August 2009 Review of age discrimination laws – what will the impact be on employers? Last month, the Government announced its intention to bring forward a review of the law around forced retirement. The review concerns the ‘default...
We received an excellent response to our recent survey concerning employer reaction to swine flu (View Details..
This morning the House of Lords has handed down its judgment in the case of HMRC v Stringer and others, so concluding the long running saga of how employers should deal with holiday entitlement for those workers who are off sick. The House of Lords&...
The Department for Work and Pensions has today published further details of its proposal to replace GP sick notes with 'fit notes' with effect from April 2010 and has launched a public consultation on the design and content of the new medical certif...
After a delay of some two months from the usual release date, the National Minimum Wage (NMW) hourly rates that will apply from 1 October 2009, have been announced today, as follows: Workers aged 22 and over: £5.80 (up from the current &pou...
While the recent media reporting of swine flu has dwelt on the obvious health and safety issues, the threat of a pandemic, whether now or in the next few months, also raises some practical challenges for HR departments across the country. Necessary...