Work/Life: international employment news update

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Issue 81

Welcome to the latest edition of our international employment news update.

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UK announces big increases to visa fees

The UK government have confirmed a 15% increase in the cost of work and visit visas and a 20% increase in the cost of student visas and sponsorship documents. It is hoped that the increased fee revenue will help fund public sector pay awards which the government have made in an attempt to settle union disputes and prevent strikes. The financial impact could be significant for businesses who want to attract the best talent in the future and for smaller companies who may not be able to afford higher sponsorship costs. There is no effective date for the increases but it is likely that they will take effect in late summer or autumn 2023.

McDonalds staff speak out about toxic work culture

Hundreds of UK employees have alleged a culture of sexual assault, harassment, racism and homophobia according to a recent BBC investigation into working conditions at the fast-food chain. This comes a few months after the company pledged to improve its culture with the Equality and Human Rights Commission and after a similar wave of allegations against them in the US. The company has set up a specialist unit to handle employee complaints and will refer the most serious cases to a third-party legal team. They are also hiring external experts to evaluate internal safeguarding protocols.

US employees demand more diversity at work

Current and former staff at US video-game giant Roblox have complained of a culture of marginalisation of minorities and a lack of willingness to address gender and racial diversity by executives. Claims include vice presidents using discriminatory and racially charged language to describe female managers. Internal quotas shared by the company show that senior staff members are primarily male and that it has no diversity targets when hiring or promoting staff, unlike other technology companies such as Meta.

Female boss sues for sex discrimination over Nerf gun war

Sarah Longman was made redundant from HML Holdings Ltd after 13 years and sued for sex discrimination and unfair dismissal citing a "laddish" and sexist workplace culture in the team she managed. This included regular immature pranks such as Nerf gun wars and throwing rubber chickens at each other, which she claimed created an overall culture that favoured male employees. She was unsuccessful in her claim after a female colleague said that she was not offended by the behaviour and that it was just workplace pranks.

French law passed to protect ferry workers

New laws will be introduced in January 2024 in France with the aim to protect ferry operator workers against so called "social dumping", which is where staff are replaced with overseas workers for worse pay and conditions. This comes after P&O cruises in the UK were accused of social dumping in 2022 after laying off almost 800 workers to be replaced by agency workers, allegedly earning just £1.80 per hour. Once in force, ships may not be able to dock at French ports if operators have breached the new rules. French MPs are pushing the European Union to adopt similar laws across all member states.

Anti-strikes Bill becomes UK law

The controversial Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act was granted Royal Assent this week, after much opposition from trade unions and claims that it will damage workers' rights. The new law allows minimum levels of service to be required by firefighters, ambulance staff, railway workers and other workers in essential sectors during industrial action. Labour has pledged to repeal the law should it get into government.

Jaguar Land Rover owner to open UK electric car factory

The owner of Jaguar Land Rover, Tata, will build a flagship £4 billion electric car battery factory in Somerset, UK, to be completed in 2026. The new factory is expected to create 4,000 direct jobs and thousands in the supply chain and has been described as the most important UK automotive investment since Nissan in the 1980s. The government will provide Tata with subsidies worth hundreds of millions of pounds in a bid to incentivise investment in the UK.