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California Legislature Enacts New Employment Laws To Take Effect in 2022 (US)

The California Legislature increased the complexity of employment law in the Golden State by enacting several employment laws that will soon take effect.  Below we summarize key aspects of the more significant new legislation. Intentional Failure to Pay Wages May Constitute the Felony of “Grand Theft” (Assembly Bill 1003) Under current law, employers who wrongfully … Continue Reading

NLRB Holds Provisions in Voluntary Severance Agreement Are Not Unlawful “Work Rules” (US)

In non-coronavirus related developments, on March 16, 2020, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB or Board) issued a decision in Baylor University Medical Center, reversing an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) decision that found certain severance agreement provisions to be unlawful under Section 8(a)(1) of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).  Section 8(a)(1) prohibits employers from … Continue Reading

Looking for a Way to Save on Severance Costs? Why Not Consider a SUB Plan? (US)

US employers who pay severance benefits may realize substantial savings by structuring their severance payments under a Supplemental Unemployment Benefit (SUB) plan. A SUB plan provides benefits similar to a traditional severance plan. Unlike traditional severance payments, benefits under a SUB plan are tied to the former employee’s receipt of state unemployment insurance (SUI) benefits … Continue Reading

Recent redundancy exercises – learning points for HR, part 6

Protecting your enhanced severance scheme Some employers pay only the statutory minimum entitlement on a redundancy dismissal, but others recognise that redundancy is a no-fault reason for termination and try to do something to sweeten an otherwise bitter pill.  Maybe this is no more than paying in lieu of notice without deduction of tax (for … Continue Reading

Costly SEC Settlement Reminds Publicly-Traded Employers of Dodd-Frank Requirements

On April 3, 2015, we reported that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had sent letters to numerous publicly-traded U.S. companies requesting their nondisclosure agreements, severance and settlement agreements, and other contracts entered into after the enactment of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank”) to determine whether the documents unduly interfere … Continue Reading

Beware the possible costs of rejecting a good offer in Australian Fair Work cases

The Fair Work jurisdiction in Australia is generally considered a ‘no costs’ jurisdiction, meaning that even if a party is successful in an action, it is usually unable to obtain a costs order against the loser. However in 2012 the Fair Work Amendment Act 2012 (Cth) widened the exceptions to the ‘no costs’ rule by … Continue Reading

Three ways to dismiss employees in Japan

If we were to list the “frequently asked questions” by multinationals doing business in Japan, the first question on the list might be “how do we dismiss employees?” The short answer is “with extreme care,” as Japan is famous for its “lifetime employment” system, and the law here is very protective of employees. Many multinationals have tried to fire … Continue Reading

UK Government consults on tax treatment of severance payments. Do you want the bad news or the bad news?

I know that over the years we have said some pretty harsh things in this blog about assorted government proposals and consultation exercises, but I take it all back.   There is a new kid in town, the HM Treasury/HMRC consultation document on Simplification of the Tax and National Insurance Treatment of Termination Payments https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/simplification-of-the-tax-and-national-insurance-treatment-of-termination-payments and … Continue Reading

A $3 million reason for Australian employers to review their contracts and policies – now!

There’s never been a more opportune time for employers in Australia to review their contracts and policies than now, with the NSW Supreme Court this week awarding more than $3 million to a chief executive after finding his employer’s redundancy policy was incorporated into his employment contract. Mr James was the CEO at ABN AMRO … Continue Reading

Taxing times for UK discrimination claimant

The recent Tax tribunal case of Moorthy v HMRC considered the well-known Section 401 ITEPA 2003 which, together with Section 403, makes taxable payments over £30,000 which are directly or indirectly in consideration of the termination of employment.  It also looked at the rules allowing compensation for injury to feelings caused by unlawful discrimination to … Continue Reading
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