Employee misconduct can take many different forms, be it financial, regulatory, harassment, discrimination, or breaches of company policies. Allegations and complaints regarding misconduct or the discovery of incidences of misconduct may come from a variety of sources and functions, ranging from routine compliance checks to external sources, whistleblowers or even regulatory dawn raids.
The Hong Kong government has commenced implementation of a COVID-19 vaccination programme intended to cover all Hong Kong residents across the territory. Vaccinations are offered free of charge with the stated aim of safeguarding public health and helping to allow further easing of restrictions and a gradual return to normal life and activities. At this stage, the rollout is prioritising vaccination of individuals within vulnerable and high-risk groups, such as the elderly and healthcare workers, but should extend to all groups during the course of this year.
A “dawn raid” is the phrase used to describe an unannounced inspection of a company’s business premises or a person’s residential premises, usually early in the morning, often around 9am in the case of business premises.
The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) is an independent non-governmental statutory body whose authority is to regulate Hong Kong’s financial markets. The Securities and Futures Ordinance (SFO)_came into operation in April 2003 and it contains civil and criminal provisions for dealing with financial misconduct.
The COVID-19 pandemic has thrown up many challenges for businesses. Severe and sustained travel restrictions, as well as other uncertainties, have resulted in many employees not taking time off and thus having significant accrued but untaken annual leave entitlements. This creates potential risk for companies. Productivity may be affected if employees all take extended or frequent breaks to use up rolled over leave when the situation eases. Similarly, risk management capability may be undermined if a large number of employees decide to take their leave at specific or peak times. So employers need to consider how to avoid risk and “log-jams” without breaching employee rights. In particular, if necessary, can they require employees to take or to forfeit annual leave?
In a significant advancement towards inclusiveness, the amendment to the Sex Discrimination Ordinance (“SDO”) prohibiting breastfeeding discrimination (“Amendment”) will come into force on 19 June 2021. We have summarized the key legal implications of the Amendment and key takeaways for employers.
In this Q&A, senior partner Nick Gall explores the roles, responsibilities and potential liabilities of an SFC-approved Responsible Officer.
In an effort to alleviate the financial difficulties as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Hong Kong Government has announced proposed relief measures which include a HK$ 80 billion Employment Support Scheme (“ESS”).
The tax treatment of payments made to employees by employers is dependent on the nature and character of the payments made.
There has been much commentary (and confusion) in the news and on social media about employees’ absences from work due to and/or in support of the protests. This short article sets out the basic legal principles in respect of protests that are occurring in Hong Kong.
