April 2, 2024 By: Leah Lively and Alexandra Shulman On June 6, 2024, new amendments to Washington State’s noncompetition statute (RCW 49.62) will go into effect, which place further limitations on the use of noncompetition agreements in Washington. Substitute Senate Bill 5935 introduces several modifications to RCW 49.62 that Washington employers (and employers with Washington employees) should be aware of: Broader definition of “noncompetition covenant ...
Our third article in the series focusing on discrimination in the workplace, covers the protected characteristic of sex (gender). We discuss the current legal position, planned changes and suggested best practice for employers. What is sex discrimination? Sex discrimination occurs when someone is treated unfairly due to their gender. In the UK, it has been illegal for some time (subject to certain exceptions) with the law now incorporated into the Equality Act 2010 ...
Serco Leisure have been issued with an enforcement notice by the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) for unlawfully processing their employees’ biometric data through facial recognition technology and fingerprint scanning. What can we learn from this? With a rise in remote working as the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic continues, there has been a proliferation of workplace monitoring ...
The Government is consulting on legislative changes to introduce greater flexibility to access surplus funds in defined benefit pension schemes. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) opened consultation further to publishing a paper entitled “Options for defined benefit schemes” on 23 February 2024 ...
Pension-Linked Emergency Savings Accounts (“PLESAs”) are a special retirement plan feature created under SECURE ACT 2.0. PLESAs were first permitted to be made available to participants as of January 1, 2024. PLESAs, which provide a flexible savings opportunity for non-highly compensated employees, can be added to certain defined contribution plans. New guidance regarding this option has been released, which may be of interest to employers and plan sponsors ...
On April 1, 2024, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) announced that its initial registration selection process, commonly known as the H-1B lottery, is complete. This means the USCIS has selected enough initial registrations to meet its numerical limit for both the standard H-1B cap and the advanced degree exemption, often referred to as the “master’s cap ...
Watch the webinar video and study our key takeaway points from our latest webinar focused on avoiding illegal working and managing risk. Our 2024 webinar programme is focused on supporting HR teams to protect the employee brand proposition of the organisations they work for. Presented by our leading team of employment lawyers these sessions will equip you on how best to handle key risks that could undermine the organisation’s employee brand ...
The Bitcoin ‘halving’ event is rapidly approaching, anticipated to occur around the 19th or 20th of April. Currently, there’s an unprecedented level of attention on Bitcoin due to this event. So, what exactly does ‘halving’ entail, and why is there such a buzz surrounding it? The term itself evokes the intrigue of a suspenseful horror film, one that could be straight out of a Stephen King story ...
2024 By: Melody Mohammadi Since their inception, the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (“FIFA”) in 1904 and the Union of European Football Associations (“UEFA”) in 1955, football’s most important governing bodies, have aimed to promote fairness and act as representative democracies over arguably the most international sport to date ...
April 12, 2024 By: Charles Whiteman and Daniel C. Silva Friendship only goes so far, at least in the case of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ baseball superstar Shohei Ohtani (“Ohtani”), and his former interpreter and de facto personal manger, Ippei Mizuhara (“Mizuhara”). On April 11, 2024, the U.S ...
In recent years, a growing number of construc- tion companies have established employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs).1 The interest in an ESOP is often generated by the need for an exit strat- egy for one or more of the owners of a closely held business, a common scenario in the construction industry ...
The Online Safety Act 2023 (the "OSA") became law on 26 October 2023 and will affect over 100,000 organisations. Here, we focus specifically on the overlaps between the OSA and data protection legislation, outlining the synergies (and differences) in key areas, together with some practical tips. This firm has been a consistent source of commentary and practical guidance on the new Online Safety Act 2023 (the ‘OSA’) ...
18 – 24 March 2024 marked Neurodiversity Celebration Week, a week held annually which aims to challenge misconceptions regarding neurological differences. We look at what employers can do to improve neurodiversity support in the workplace going forward. Neurodiversity is an umbrella term which is used to describe alternative ways of thinking and learning and it includes conditions such as autism, dyslexia and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) ...
The Sexism in the City inquiry was set up to establish what progress has been made in tackling sexism in the financial services sector. We discuss the findings and offer advice for those in the sector trying to navigate the current regulatory landscape. The financial services industry is crucial to the UK economy. It employs more than 2 ...
The United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) has issued a final rule to implement the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (“PWFA”). The final rule, which aims to provide clarity regarding the protections afforded to employees and duties imposed upon employers under the PWFA, is set to be published in the Federal Registrar on April 19, 2024. It will thereafter become effective on June 18, 2024, 60 days after its publication ...
April 18, 2024 By: Leah Lively and Alexandra Shulman The Supreme Court of the United States issued an opinion on Wednesday, April 17, 2024, that will make it easier for employees to pursue discrimination claims against their employers based on job transfers or other non-pecuniary personnel decisions. In Muldrow v. City of St. Louis, Muldrow, a female police officer, alleged that she was transferred to a less desirable unit because a new supervisor preferred a male officer for the role ...
A podcast series that explores privacy themes within some of the most well-known movies. In this episode, William Moore and Max Schrems discuss “The Social Network”. Whether you are a film buff, a privacy advocate, or simply curious about the intersection of storytelling and privacy, take a journey with us as we explore how the big screen tackles privacy ...
On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) held a public hearing where members voted 3-2 to adopt a final rule effectively banning employers from enforcing non-compete clauses against employees with very limited exceptions. This rule, which is largely similar to the proposed rule first announced by the Commission in January of 2023, imposes a “comprehensive ban on new non-competes with all workers ...
On April 17, 2024 the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) Division of Examinations (the “Division”) issued a Risk Alert regarding investment advisers’ compliance with amended Investment Advisers Act Rule 206(4)-1 (the “Marketing Rule”) ...
As noted in our May 3, 2023 and August 14, 2023 client alerts, Congress enacted the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) in late 2022, expanding protections for pregnant workers. Pursuant to the Act, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) was directed to make rules to implement the statute. On April 15, 2024, the EEOC issued its final rule and interpretive guidance, which will go into effect on June 18, 2024 ...
