Talking Work

The pandemic provoked the governments of many countries to think seriously about the mental health of employees, particularly those working remotely – and the trend is continuing. In this episode, we talk to Stefano de Luca Tamajo from our Italian firm about a survey we have just completed on how disconnection rights are developing and what kind of rules are being put in place.  

In this episode, Stijn Broecke, a senior economist at the OECD who is leading their Future of Work initiative, talks about recent OECD findings on how artificial intelligence is beginning to reshape the world of work, what employers and employees think about this, and the structural changes a rapid wave of AI-driven automation may bring. Against a backdrop of rising inequalities, he considers that role that dialogue can play, alongside investment in skills, in smoothing the transition.

In this episode, Professor Wolfgang Lutz founder of the Wittgenstein Centre for Demography and Global Human Capital and all-round expert on demographics, discusses with us the issue of low birthrate in various countries across the world and the possible impacts on the workplaces of the future.  

Anti-discrimination law is changing in Australia, with a new positive duty on employers to ensure sex discrimination and harassment are eliminated in their workplaces. Sarah Clarke, partner in our Australian law firm explains what employers need to do to comply.  

Inflation is on everyone’s minds these days and we’ve been thinking about how it impacts employees, particularly those on minimum wage. Emanuela Nespoli, partner in our Italian law firm and Alexander Ulrich, partner in our Germany law firm, have been discussing the issues.

ESG has become a key focus for lots of organisations around the world, but those in the EU will now need to keep up with the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, which came into force in January this year. We asked two colleagues from EU countries (Italy and Ireland) to tell us all about it.

With women in the EU paid only 84% of what men are paid, there is a lot of work for the EU to do on the gender pay gap. Will its recent Pay Transparency Directive do the job? In this episode, two of our lawyers discuss the issues. Have a listen

What are the megatrends driving change to the workplace and what might their impact be? James Davies, partner in our UK law firm has been looking into these very questions and we chat to him about his insights in this episode.

Which countries have state mechanisms to index-link wages to inflation and if so, is that a good strategy? How likely is it to cause a wage-price spiral? We recently conducted a survey of 27 countries to find out and in this podcast, Deborah Ishihara interviews economist and staff writer at Ius Laboris, Susanna Gevorgyan, who explains all about it.

So many employers across the world are dealing now with crises brought on by inflation, and energy and supply shortages. As we reel from one crisis to the next (pandemic, war, climate change, political instability) it really feels as if we are in ‘permacrisis’. At Ius Laboris, we have just completed a major international project looking at all the permutations of this for employers, including what kinds of temporary measures can be put in place to ease the burden and what the consequences of the current crises might be for the future. In this episode, we get some insights from Sophie Maes, partner at our Belgian firm and leader of our Crisis management project.

We’ve just launched a tool to enable HR professionals to quickly check whether they have covered each area of compliance that they need to. It’s quick and easy to use and at the end you can download a report of the findings. Our lawyers explain more.

If your company is thinking of setting up workspaces in the metaverse, what HR issues do you need to consider? We went into the metaverse the other day to record an episode of Talking Work about potential issues of discrimination based on avatar design. It’s our first foray into the challenges of working in virtual reality and we interviewed Tarun Tawakley, partner at our UK law firm, Lewis Silkin.

In this episode, we ask lawyers from France and the UK for an update on the law surrounding platform work. We look at recent case law and ask if there is any international consensus yet on how gig workers should be treated. We think about what steps platforms could take themselves to protect their workforce, even where this is not mandated by law and we also look at some new EU rules that will impact gig economy workers. Deborah Ishihara interviews Tarun Tawakley and Boris Muniz this time.

How can managers run meetings in a way that allows everyone’s voice to be heard? How can they create an environment in which people feel empowered to challenge others’ ideas, so as to get the best outcomes? We talk to a pensions lawyer intent on making boards of trustees as diverse and inclusive as possible about her ideas. Emily Rowley is a lawyer at our UK pensions firm, Sackers.

We take a look in this episode at business in New Zealand and, in particular, businesses that are struggling to get back up and running smoothly after COVID. As with other places in the world, New Zealand’s travel and hospitality industries are at the sharp end of this and we talk to Scott Worthy from our New Zealand firm to find out what’s happening what businesses can do about it from an HR perspective.

The EU’s work/life balance directive comes into operation in August and so, in this episode, we take a look at what it says. We also think about gender disparity at home more generally and how this impacts the workplace. Our guests today are Sara Baldus from Denmark and Katarzyna Dobkowska from Poland.

Every business is ultimately about its people and M&As, spin-offs and carve-outs are no exception. But what employment and personal data issues need to be considered when handling a corporate transaction of this kind and what are the potential pitfalls? We asked two specialist employment lawyers to answer our questions.

In this episode, Catherine Leung, partner in our Hong Kong law firm, talks to us about how environmental, social and governance issues are being handled by employers in Hong Kong and the APAC region. We find out what kind of initiatives are being taken and discuss also the impact of the pandemic on the way workplaces now operate.

From one of the longest lockdowns in the world, to strong protections against dismissals and layoffs, we hear from Verónica Puerta Basaldúa from our Argentinian law firm Funes de Rioja about how the pandemic has played out there and what the situation is now.

In this episode, lawyers from the UK, the US, Denmark and Hong Kong discuss some of the benefits of the new ways of working that have emerged from the pandemic, along with some of the challenges. For instance, is greater flexibility always a plus? What about the right to disconnect? And how has gender equality been affected and how have people with disabilities fared? Our panel discuss these issues and more.

Chile is getting a new president and his views about how employment should look are very different from those of his predecessors. We talk to Marcela Salazar, partner in our Chilean law firm, to find out what’s likely to happen, as the new president takes office on 11 March.

How does the law protect women in India and what is the legacy of #metoo? We ask Debjani Aich, partner at our Indian member firm Kochhar & Co., to come on the podcast to discuss these things and to tell us what her clients are doing to promote equality in their workplaces.

Burkard Göpfert from our German law firm joins us today to talk about restructuring and focuses on some of the ways to avoid the pain of workforce reduction. We also look at the challenges for unions in representing remote workers and whether employers need to provide them with electronic means of contacting workers. Listen in for this and more.

How can businesses build back after Covid in a way that enables them to deal with the large-scale challenges ahead? Burkard Göpfert from our German law firm gives us some insights. We ask him what environment sustainability means for the practice of HR and find out about rules in some countries that require businesses to check the ethics of their supply chains.

In this episode we are joined by Jovita Valatkaitė from our Lithuanian firm, to hear her update on what’s happening in Lithuania. She describes several issues to do with pay, including a hike in the minimum wage, reflecting inflationary pressures.

There are new rules in the UK that will affect what trustees of pension schemes invest in – and the rules could help in the fight against climate change. Trustees must now identify the climate risks of investment opportunities, provide metrics and state what they are doing publicly – opening their choices up to the scrutiny of stakeholders and activists. But the UK approach is not the only way to cut it and so in this episode, we also think about the nuances between an environmental, social and governance (ESG) approach to investment and investing on a purely ‘ethical’ basis. Ralph McClelland, from our UK pensions firm, Sackers, shares his expertise.

What are the key workplace issues in Mexico at the moment? David Puente Tostado from our Mexican law firm, Basham, Ringe y Correa tells us about teleworking rules, vaccination, collective bargaining and changes to the profit-sharing rules. On the international side, he talks about the two cases being brought against Mexico by the US for alleged failure to comply with the terms of the trade agreement between Mexico, the US and Canada, the USMCA.

What economic and health measures introduced by governments in response to Covid-19 have been the most successful? Join this interview with Bettina Schaller, head of group public affairs in the Adecco Group, to examine what worked well for some countries and what didn’t work so well for others, based on a report co-authored by Ius Laboris and the Adecco Group for The World Economic Forum.

What are the forces driving changes to the employment landscape and how can we quantify and evaluate them? James Davies, partner at our UK law firm, has written a report identifying 8 drivers of change and 8 emerging themes. He’s also come up with some predictions about where we’re headed. Join us to hear his fascinating insights.

Exactly what happened in 2021? We talk a look at the employment law trends from across the world with our guest, Marco Sideri, partner at our Italian law firm. We also think about how many of the changes are likely to last beyond the COVID era. Join us to find out.

How might climate change shape employment law and practice in future? We take a look at this weighty question today, with one of our most interesting thinkers, James Davies, from our UK law firm, Lewis Silkin. Join us to hear some fascinating insights.

What will the world of work look like once we start moving beyond Covid? For many people, it will have changed forever. In this episode we talk to Sophie Maes, of our Belgian law firm, Claeys & Engels about our major report into ‘The New Workplace’, covering all the issues that are top of mind for employers now, along with some that have been less-well explored so far in the media. The report includes information on vaccination and testing, working time, remote investigations, working from abroad and a few more.

We talk today to Anastasia Petrova about how employers should conduct internal investigations in Russia: what steps to take in advance, how to deal with data privacy issues and crucially, in these days of home working – how to conduct the investigation remotely.

The Social and Economic Committees, which are the employee representative bodies in France, now have a new remit to scrutinise the environmental implications of projects planned by employers. Arnaud Teissier, partner in our French firm, CAPSTAN Avocats, gives us the low down.

The unions have faced some difficult challenges during COVID and in this episode we talk to David Hopper, partner in our UK law firm, Lewis Silkin, about how they have tried to meet them. We also think about future challenges: how to motivate young people to join; how to deal with technological advancements and how to stay relevant when other, newer, pressure groups start moving into their space…

In this episode, Alexander Ulrich of our German firm, Kliemt HR Lawyers, explains all about our new digital tool, which enables employers to find what legal obligations they have based on their employee headcount. It turns out that headcount matters for lots of reasons: health & safety, trade unions and redundancies, for example. You can choose any of 30+ countries, tell the system how many employees you have - and it will tell you what you are required by to do law. Alexander sets out the details.

COVID-19 has also taken a toll on the mental health of many employees. While some people are dealing with feelings of isolation when working from home, others can find it hard to switch off from work. In this episode, we discuss these twin issues with the Italian Chair of our international Expert Group on health and safety, Stefano de Luca Tamajo.

The 6 main parties taking part in the German Federal elections have set out their ideas and in this episode, we take a look at their plans for employment. Till Heimann from our German law firm, Kliemt HR Lawyers, joins us to explain what they each envisage.

US attorney Dawn Siler-Nixon talks to us about how the new US administration is putting a big focus on the rights of LGBTQ+ people at work. According to Executive Orders issued by President Biden: ‘Every person should be treated with respect and dignity and should be able to live without fear, no matter who they are or whom they love.’ We look at what federal agencies are now required to do and what private employers also need to think about.

If you can’t measure it, how can you improve it?

If you want to increase the diversity of your workforce, you first need to know if you are allowed by law to ask your employees diversity questions. In some countries you can, but in others you can’t. In this episode we ask Ben Favaro, data privacy specialist from our UK law firm, Lewis Silkin, about the results of our international survey into diversity and inclusion monitoring and what it all means for employers.

We invited Karen Baxter from our UK firm, Lewis Silkin, and Síobhra Rush from our Irish firm, Lewis Silkin Ireland, to discuss internal investigations and the new EU Whistleblowing Directive that comes into effect in December. Karen takes us through a scenario in which an employee is accused of sexual harassment by another employer and shares tips on how to avoid any pitfalls, while Síobhra sets out for us the main changes to the whistleblowing regime in Europe.

Having worked remotely during the pandemic and traveled a little during the holiday season, many people are starting to wonder what it would be like to work abroad on a more permanent basis – particularly in a sunny country. We invited Inês Reis, partner at our Portuguese member firm pbbr, to tell us about relocating to work from home in Portugal.

Board members in Germany cannot currently suspend their mandate temporarily in case of pregnancy, sickness or to care of a sick family member. However, this is about to change as a result of the initiative #stayonboard.

Joining us is Jessica Jacobi, partner at our German firm Kliemt HR Lawyers and one of the initiators of #stayonboard, along with one of her co-activists Tobias de Raet, a corporate/M&A partner at Linden Partners. We discussed the new law, its impact on companies and why they first decided to start the #stayonboard initiative.

Pride Month is coming to a close, but we still have more to discuss about LGBTQ+ equality at work...

We invited Debjani Aich, partner at our Indian member firm Kochhar & Co., to tell us about equality in terms of transgender rights, as Indian law now protects the 'Third Gender'. We also discuss the impact of #metoo in India and what India has been doing in relation, for example, to the gender pay gap.

As life expectancy increases, governments are starting to redesign pensions for the future. So, will people need to work for longer and will governments require employers to provide pensions for employees?

In this episode, Corine Hoekstra, senior associate at our Dutch pensions firm Blom Veugelers Zuiderman Advocaten, joins us to talk about pensions law reform and also how a planned new Dutch pensions law will impact business.

What are the biggest misconceptions lawyers have about legal tech? What key trends are we seeing right now? Martin Kammandel, legal tech engineer at Kliemt.HR, breaks down these questions and talks about some of the projects his team has been working on.

As discussed previously in this podcast, there is an ongoing debate around the world as to whether gig workers should be classified as employees or self-employed. Recently, in Australia, the court in a case involving Deliveroo held that delivery workers class as employees. We invited Claire Brattey, special counsel at Corrs Chambers Westgarth, to tell us more about this and its possible impact and also to talk to us about the way casual workers are supported in Australia.

Remote working is here to stay but what happens if an employee wants to work from abroad? It turns out this raises all sorts of questions about immigration, employment law in the new country, health & safety, social security, tax and other compliance issues. We invited Sophie Maes, partner of Claeys & Engels to talk to us about all of these and more.

We invited Pascal Lagoutte, partner in our French firm, CAPSTAN Avocats, and chairman of the Ius Laboris alliance, to talk to us about managing operations in France from an HR perspective. We discuss what to look out for in French employment law, including some things that foreign companies might find surprising about running a business in France. Pascal also gives us his view on what distinguishes Ius Laboris as an alliance and highlights that we have been working together now for 20 years, serving our clients in one big team, across the world.

When lockdowns started happening in different countries around the world last year, remote working was treated as an emergency measure. But now employers are having to work out how to set it up for the longer term – and that raises a whole raft of issues that need proper thought, such as health and safety, mental wellbeing, the right for employees disconnect, cybersecurity, how to monitor time spent working, work performance and more. There is a new remote working Act in Spain and so we head there (remotely) for this episode to talk to Iñigo Sagardoy, chairman of our Spanish firm Sagardoy Abogados to get his insights.