Work/Life: international employment news update

Quick read

Issue 94

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

Our strategic alliance with leading Spanish law firm ECIJA means clients looking to do business in Spain, Portugal and Latin America are supported by one of the best multidisciplinary law firms in the legal sector with a well-established reputation for innovation and success. Furthermore, this alliance enriches our newsletter as ECIJA regularly contributes insightful content, broadening our insight on legal matters.

(you may require a subscription to view some of these articles).

United Kingdom

UK whistleblowing calls rose 23% last year

The number of whistleblowing calls rose by 23% in 2023 compared to the previous year, the UK’s leading whistleblowing charity, Protect, has disclosed. Of calls made to Protect's hotline, 42% came from the private sector, followed by 24% from the public sector and 23% from the charity sector. Protect said the demographic of callers went some way in disproving the myth that whistleblowing is affected largely by senior executives, reporting that 44% of callers to its Advice Line earned below GBP30,000.

Protect said that in 41% of cases, whistleblowing went unacknowledged by employers.

UK government releases autism at work report

The UK’s Department for Work and Pensions has released a report on autism in the workplace, recognising the challenges that autistic people face in professional contexts and proposing methods for HR managers to help overcome them.

The report spans recruitment processes to helping autistic people climb the career ladder, offering 19 recommendations for employers. Among these was the recommendation that employers implement IT systems which suit autistic people’s needs, as well as signposting Ambitious about Autism’s Employ Autism programme, which extends internship opportunities in environments which are tailored to autistic people.

It was also found that some job interview questions presented barriers for autistic people in the workplace, with ambiguously worded questions and some styles of application form (ie those that lean heavily on free-form text boxes rather than tick-boxes) proving recurrent challenges.

Law 4/2023, of 28 February, for the real and effective equality of trans people and for the guarantee of the rights of LGTBI people

As of the 2 March 2024, companies in Spain employing more than 50 employees must have a planned set of measures and resources to achieve effective equality for LGBTI people, as well as an action protocol for dealing with violence against LGBTI people. These measures must be pre-negotiated with the employees’ representatives.

Despite the fact regulation has not yet dealt with this specific content, the obligation is already mandatory for the affected companies. In the case of non-compliance, administrative sanctions, loss of bonuses or contracting opportunities with the public sector could be incurred, as well as other unquantifiable consequences, such as loss of talent or reputational damage.

Menstrual leave in France: one step forward, one step back

Back in May 2023, the French Government announced that it would work on creating a new right to menstrual leave for female employees suffering from endometriosis.

On 1 February 2024, a bill to introduce menstrual leave was presented to the Senate. The bill provided for two days of leave per month, with no waiting period to benefit from a compensatory allowance. But this bill was rejected by the Senate, with some opponents putting forward the risk of discrimination in hiring. Nonetheless, several French companies have gone ahead, with many company-level agreements expressly providing for it (eg Carrefour, Métro France, Louis, Braincube).

Dutch Labour Market remains tight and vacancies are high

As per new figures published by the national statistics agency CBS, there are currently 114 vacancies in the Dutch labour market for every 100 people without work, and the official unemployment total had fallen to 360,000 at the end of last year. Taking this into account, the jobless rate in the fourth quarter rose to 3.5%, which is a marginal decrease to previous years.

The CBS statistics are drawn amongst the 15-75 age group in line with the International Labour Organisation. According to CBS calculations, as well as 360,000 officially unemployed people, a further 525,000 part-timers would like to work more hours. For Jeroen Tiel, the CEO of Randstad, "but this is not enough to meet the challenges" and the Netherlands will continue to rely on immigration to fill the gaps.

"Incomprehensible" need to fight against pregnancy discrimination

Outgoing Minister Karien van Gennip of Social Affairs, it is "incomprehensible that in 2024 we still have to fight" against pregnancy discrimination. According to Gennip, over 40% of women experience pregnancy discrimination. This comment came at the back of an article in AD in which WNL employees accused editor-in-chief Huisjes of failing to provide certainty to women that their job will still remain after returning from maternity leave. This is despite the fact that pregnancy discrimination is illegal. Pregnant presenters reported they stopped working for 6 months and were unaware of whether their contract would be extended post birth of their children. Some were even told outright not to return to their positions.

Bankruptcies expected to rise in the Netherlands this year

According to credit insurer Allianz Trade, bankruptcies in the Netherlands are due to rise. Or as stated by the risk director Johan Geeroms "the increase in bankruptcies is a serious warning sign. Last year, we called the 52% increase a catch-up from coronavirus, but an additional 31% will join them this year". This appears to be the trend particularly in sectors like hospitality, transport, retail, and especially in construction.

The general consensus appears to be that globally bankruptcies are to decrease and settle by 2025. However, following the global pandemic 9% more companies are expected to go bankrupt this year compared to last.