Out of the blue last week came a formal consultation in relation to a proposed re-write of the ACAS Code of Practice on disciplinary and grievance procedures, the first major look at it in nearly 20 years. The new Code contains 95 paragraphs to its predecessor’s 47, but just the last six of them usher … Continue Reading
A couple of years ago I read a quite serious piece on whether it was sensible or necessary to say please and thank you when interacting with AI platforms. This was not because Skynet might be a little less inclined to destroy humanity if we all had lovely manners. Instead, ran the argument, if we … Continue Reading
The UK government has launched a consultation on the use of workplace monitoring technologies (WMT), including surveillance tools, algorithmic management systems and AI-enabled decision-making. The consultation forms part of the wider Make Work Pay agenda and seeks views on whether additional regulation is needed to improve transparency, worker engagement and accountability when employers monitor workers. … Continue Reading
When workplace investigations hit the headlines, the risks can escalate quickly. Suddenly, employers are dealing with media attention, social media commentary, employee concerns and potentially serious reputational risk – all while trying to conduct a fair and effective investigation. We were recently privileged to host the International Employment Lawyer’s Workplace Investigations Masterclass, which included three … Continue Reading
When workplace investigations hit the headlines, the risks can escalate quickly. Suddenly, employers are dealing with media attention, social media commentary, employee concerns and potentially serious reputational risk – all while trying to conduct a fair and effective investigation. We were recently privileged to host the International Employment Lawyer’s Workplace Investigations Masterclass, which included three … Continue Reading
The most common themes for grumbling at all the recent employment law events I have attended have been the same: the youth of today; why the UK’s railway infrastructure is seemingly made of chocolate; and the tide of AI-assisted employee grievances. Can’t help you with the first two, sorry, but somebody will have to do … Continue Reading
When workplace investigations hit the headlines, the risks can escalate quickly. Suddenly, employers are dealing with media attention, social media commentary, employee concerns and potentially serious reputational risk – all while trying to conduct a fair and effective investigation. We were recently privileged to host the International Employment Lawyer’s Workplace Investigations Masterclass, which included three … Continue Reading
Based on a Privacy World blog by David Naylor, Robert Lister & Dan Fara, adapted for Employment Law Worldview by David Whincup The UK’s data protection framework continues to evolve following the enactment of the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025. One of the more operationally significant developments for employers is the introduction of a … Continue Reading
Italy recently introduced Decree-Law No.62/2026 which seeks to address three key areas: (i) the definition of “fair wages”; (ii) the restructuring of social security contribution exemptions as part of efforts to boost employment levels; and (iii) the protection of workers engaged through digital platforms. The most significant change is the introduction of a new concept … Continue Reading
We know that with only a few days to go until the Pay Transparency Directive comes into force in Continental Europe, many companies are wondering what is going to happen, bearing in mind that only two EU member states have published final legislation implementing the full provisions of the Directive. Members of our Labour & … Continue Reading
By: Marga Caproni, Chelsea Gunning, Lisa Shannon, Annette Demmel, Marmare Barekati, Malgorzata Grzelak, Floriane Essling and Marion Cavalier Following on from our blog earlier in the week concerning the ECJ’s recent decision on data subject access requests (DSARs), we take a brief look at different European countries and the role that DSARs have come to … Continue Reading
In response to questions formulated by the German Amtsgericht of Arnsberg, the ECJ ruled that a first DSAR may be regarded as ‘excessive’, within the meaning of Article 12(5) GDPR, where the data controller demonstrates that, despite formal observance of the conditions governing DSARs, the request was made by the data subject:… Continue Reading
Recently we were catching up with some clients in our London office and discussing the potential implications of the Employment Rights Act (ERA) 2025. What became clear from our conversations was that many businesses are grappling with similar issues as they prepare for implementation of this very significant new piece of employment legislation. Below is … Continue Reading
The Home Office has issued a consultation on a draft Code of practice for employers on avoiding unlawful discrimination while preventing illegal working. The draft Code is not materially different from the current version (last updated in 2022) except in relation to one key area (which we expand on below). In our view, many employers … Continue Reading
From 1 December, the Acas early conciliation period was extended from six to twelve weeks. The intention was clear: to ease growing administrative pressures on Acas at a time of rising demand. But while the extension may give Acas more breathing space, it raises a broader question for employers and employees alike – does more time … Continue Reading
Last week, in the wake of International Women’s Day, the Flemish government approved a – very partial – implementation of the Pay Transparency Directive. The bulk of the transposition work is still to be done by the federal government and the social partners in the National Labour Council, and on these fronts, things are still … Continue Reading
You’d think that, now that we’re less than four months away from the official implementation date of the Pay Transparency Directive, we’d be bombarding you with updates on national implementation initiatives, right? And yet no, things are still fairly quiet on the pay transparency front. There are, however, some developments to report, for example in … Continue Reading
If we had to rank the most frequently asked questions regarding the Pay Transparency Directive, the question of its relationship to individual employees’ right to privacy and the GDPR would be pretty high up there. The concern is clear: the Directive requires employers to share averages of wages of male and female employees per category … Continue Reading
On 12 December, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) finally issued its official response to the public consultation on non-financial misconduct (NFM). This was issued through a Policy Statement PS25/23, finalising new binding regulatory rules and accompanying official guidance on NFM. The Policy Statement 79 respondents contributed to the consultation, including Squire Patton Boggs. At long … Continue Reading
In previous blogs, we have mentioned how Belgium is high up in the ranks of countries with employees on long-term absence, and how our new(ish) government wants to tackle this national disease on different fronts. The first chapter of this ambitious plan came into force on 1 January 2026. We have summarised the changes below, … Continue Reading
The UK Government’s recent Command Paper – A Fairer Pathway to Settlement signals the most significant overhaul of immigration and settlement policy in decades. The proposals aim to replace the current five year route to Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) with a merit-based system where settlement is earned through contribution and integration rather than granted … Continue Reading
We sighed a collective sigh of relief when the Belgian government finally reached the budget agreement last week. The negotiations had been really difficult, which is not surprising considering the challenges the government faces: €8 billion had to be found somewhere to keep Belgium’s debt at an acceptable level (acceptable as in not driving us … Continue Reading
On 25 November, the Polish government published the principles that will form the basis of its new legislation implementing the outstanding provisions of the Pay Transparency Directive. Readers of our blog will be aware that Poland has already published legislation to implement the transparency provisions in the Directive (see our previous blog) and these will … Continue Reading
While the new government announced fairly drastic measures on the employment front when it was formed towards the end of January 2025, most of these changes have yet to take place. There are however a couple of developments to report: Belgium has long applied an early retirement regime known as a ‘bridge pension‘ or, following … Continue Reading
