Mexico Outsourcing Update
Effective 1st May 2021, changes in outsourcing regulation have been approved by the Mexican President and Congress.
The legislation prohibits the outsourcing of employees except for in the following circumstances:
To provide specialised services/work that is not included in the business’ core business activity
Companies within the same corporate group are allowed to share specialised services
Companies will have 3 months from the effective date of the amendment to carry out a ‘special employer substitution’ for the contractors that are moving to employment contracts. If the acquired employee’s labour rights are recognised, the employer may be responsible to backdate social security contributions for the 5 years prior to the transfer of employment from a contractor to an employee.
Subcontractors will have to register with the Ministry of Employment and Social Welfare within the 3 month period and also begin issuing quarterly reports to the Workers’ National Housing Fund Institute and the Mexican Institute of Social Security.
Companies will be jointly responsible for ensuring that social security obligations are being met by the subcontractor, where the company has outsourced personnel for their services.
If a company fails to comply, fines from 2,000 up to 50,000 Update and Measure Units (UMA) will be charged to both the company and subcontractor per affected employee.
As employers are required to hire their existing contractors as employees, excluding the exceptions above, they are obligated to provide profit share to the employees. The maximum limit for the profit share is 3 months’ salary or an average of the profit share amount received in the 3 years prior (whichever is greater for the employee).
Early Retirement in Denmark
From 1st August 2021, individuals in the labour market in Denmark can apply for early retirement if they have reached the qualifying cut-off age.
This legislation change will allow employees to retire up to 3 years early if they meet the eligibility criteria. The criteria requires employees to have had over 42 qualifying years working within the labour market and to have met the cut off age for retirement, which is currently 61.
The minimum 42 years of service is known as the employee’s ‘years of seniority’; this period is expected to increase by 1 year for individuals born after 1964 and an additional year for those born after 1968.
Individuals born during the second half of 1955 will be able to receive their first early retirement pension payment from January 2022, subject to meeting the qualifying criteria.
The early retirement pension payment will be the full basic state pension amount plus a supplement if the employee is single (approx. DKK13,500 per month).
Private pensions and/or any other income can be payable in addition but may offset the amount received from the early retirement pension.
When an individual reaches normal retirement age they will receive the normal state old age pension and the early retirement pension will cease.
Labour Code Changes in Slovakia
Several labour code amendments around teleworking, meal vouchers, dismissal at retirement age and trade union agreements came into force on March 1st, 2021.
Teleworking
From 1st March 2021, if an employee intends to telework on a permanent basis, the employer is required to add a written addendum/amendment in their employment contract. The amendment needs to be agreed by both parties, even if the employee is due to telework on a regular part-time basis, rather than full-time.
Flexible teleworking schedules can also be agreed between both parties which may eliminate employers having to pay additional salary, such as overtime, for work outside of previously agreed hours.
Additionally, employers are required to provide employees with the relevant work equipment and compensation for any additional costs to the employee based on them teleworking. The compensation needs to be reviewed on a per employee basis, based on actual cost to the employee. The amount cannot be generalised across the whole workforce and cannot be proportional. Employees who only telework on an ad-hoc basis are not entitled to receive the compensation.
Employees have the right to enter the usual workplace whilst working remotely and also the right to disconnect outside of work schedules agreed by both parties.
Meal Vouchers
If an employer does not provide onsite lunch facilities, employees are allowed to choose to receive meal vouchers or a monetary meal allowance. Employees can choose which option they prefer from the start of March 2021; however, employers have until the end of 2021 to prepare and action the request.
Once an employee has chosen their preferred option, they are bound to their choice for 12 months.
Where an employer is currently contracted with a meal voucher provider, the employer can choose to only allow the change after the current contract ends. This must not be later than 31st December 2021.
The legislation details the minimum financial contribution by the employer and also the income tax exemptions.
From the 1st of January 2021, employers are encouraged to issue meal vouchers in electronic form only. Where there is little opportunity to use electronic vouchers in and around the workplace, employers will be exempt.
Dismissal at Retirement Age
From January 1st, 2022, employers will be allowed to dismiss employees who have reached the social security retirement age and who have met the eligibility criteria to receive the state pension. Both conditions must be met in order for an employer to be able to terminate employment for this reason.
Where this occurs, terminated employees will be entitled to severance pay.
Trade Union Agreements
Following the amendment, employees can only be represented by a trade union where its members are actively employed by the same employer. Historically some employees were represented by individuals who had no connection to the employees they were representing and/or the employer. The change will ensure that the trade union is active in the workplace and can represent the interests of its employees accordingly.
Updated leave in Ireland
From the 1st April 2021, an update in the Family Leave and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2021 has increased parental leave from 2 weeks to 5 weeks per parent for the birth or adoption of a child.
The additional 3 weeks leave is effective immediately for new children/adoptees but existing parents can also benefit from the additional 3 weeks, so long as the birth/adoption of the child was after the 1st of November 2019.
The eligibility period to take the leave has also been increased from 1 year from birth/adoption up to 2 years.
Same sex couples are also now entitled to adoptive and parental leave. In the case of adoption, adoptive parents can choose which parent will take adoptive leave, with paternity leave being available for the other parent, regardless of gender.
Parents cannot transfer the leave between each other and both are encouraged to use the allowance provided to them.
The parental benefit will be paid at the same rate as maternity, paternity, and adoptive benefit (currently €245 per week).
Updated leave in Hong Kong
An amendment to the Employer (Amendment) Ordinance 2019 has amended Hong Kong’s statutory maternity leave entitlements, effective from December 2020.
Employees are now entitled to an additional 4 weeks of maternity leave, increasing the total to 14 weeks.
The maternity benefit is also available to employees who lose their child due to miscarriage at 24 weeks or later. This is a reduction from the previous period which was 28 weeks or longer.
Employers will be required to pay the maternity leave however they will be reimbursed for the additional 4 weeks’ leave, up to HK $80,000.
Updated leave in New Zealand
New Zealand have released a Bereavement Leave for Miscarriage Bill on 31st March 2021 which provides 3 days bereavement leave after a miscarriage or stillbirth. The leave provision applies to both the mother, their partner and parents who are planning to have a child through surrogacy or who adopt.
New Zealand are also expected to release an update to the Holidays (Increasing Sick Leave) Amendment Act 2020 in mid-2021. The update will entitle employees to 10 days paid sick leave when their next 12 months entitlement period begins, an increase from 5 days. Employees will only be able to carry over 10 unused sick days (up to a maximum of 20 per year), which will be a reduction from the current 15 days. New hires will need to serve a 6 month period before they are entitled to the 10 days paid sick leave.