The rise in Covid-19 cases has left many employers in Hong Kong contemplating whether they can lawfully require their employees to undergo testing for Covid-19. In times like these, employers find themselves trying to balance their business interests and continuity on one hand, with employees’ concerns and sensitivities on the other. In this article we discuss factors that employers should consider when requesting or directing employees to undergo Covid-19 testing.
Gall have written an article for the British Chamber of Commerce’s latest magazine issue on how to safely work from home. They explore security risks involved in working from home, explain new guidance from the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data, and share key takeaways for employers and staff in protecting data.
Remote working arrangements have become prevalent in response to the challenges posed by the pandemic such as risk of infections, travel restrictions and quarantine requirements in Hong Kong and elsewhere. Many employers are also considering remote working as ‘the new normal’ given the reduced operational costs. For some employees, remote working may mean working overseas. In this article, we discuss the legal implications that employers in Hong Kong should have regard to before allowing their employees to work overseas.
The Hong Kong Government has lowered the threshold for compulsory COVID-19 testing to identify and curb the transmission chain of COVID-19 by implementing new measures under the Prevention and Control of Disease (Compulsory Testing for Certain Persons) Regulation (Cap. 599J) (“Regulation”). In this article, we consider the implications for employers and how to minimise the impact to their businesses.
The issue of sexual harassment and the #MeToo movement in mainland China has burst into the spotlight again recently. Demonstrators defied restrictions on public protests and mass gatherings to collect outside a Beijing court in December in support of Zhou Xiaoxuan (“Zhou”), a young woman bringing a claim of sexual misconduct against Zhu Jun (“Zhu”), a well-known television presenter. Such cases are relatively rare and the high-profile nature of the man accused has resulted in significant attention within China and beyond. The timing coincides with the new PRC Civil Code taking effect on 1 January 2021. Article 1010 of the Civil Code establishes important new principles on what constitutes sexual harassment, expands the scope of recipients to include men, and introduces specific obligations and potential liability for employers in this area.
The Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (“PCPD”) has issued Guidance Notes for (1) organisations, (2) employees, and (3) users of video conference software, with a view to enhance measures for data security and data privacy in the use, storage and handling of personal data when employees work from home (“WFH”).
In this article we have briefly summarised the three Guidance Notes (“Guidance”) published by PCPD and set out key takeaways for employers.
The Employment (Amendment) Ordinance 2020 (the “Amendment”) has come into operation from today, 11 December 2020. Our previous update on its details can be viewed here.
In light of COVID-19, many employers have been considering ways to reduce their overhead costs. Employees’ wages often account for a large share of the employer’s expenses, consequently, employees are increasingly being asked to vary their employment terms by agreeing to take no pay leave and/or a reduction to their wages. Often these requests are premised as an alternative to redundancy. This article examines the rights of both employers and employees in a relation to a variation of the employment contract.
A settlement agreement (also known as a separation agreement) is a legally binding contractual document which sets out the employer’s and employee’s agreed terms of the termination of the employee’s employment. There is no statutory requirement to enter into a settlement agreement upon termination, however, where separation terms can be agreed, it is often helpful to confirm those terms in writing. Typically, a term of the settlement agreement will be to keep the terms and the fact of the agreement confidential. In this note, we consider the effect of a breach of a confidentiality clause in a settlement agreement and discuss factors that may be useful for drafting a confidentiality clause.
It is increasingly common for employers and employees in Hong Kong to agree cessation terms. In such cases, an employee may be asked to enter into a separation agreement.
