On 19 October 2023, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission reached an agreement with the American company Dollar General, ending litigation started in 2017 for alleged violations of genetic and disability laws (EEOC v. Dolgencorp, LLC., Case No. 2:17-cv-01649-MHH) in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama.
The Commission alleged that the Company required disclosure of a family member's medical condition during the pre-employment medical examination and used selection criteria that excluded qualified applicants with disabilities.
On 25 October 2023, the Gauteng High Court stated that Sections 25, 25A, 25B, and 25C of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act 1997 (BCEA) relating to the minimum period of maternity, parental, adoption, and commissioning parental leave are invalid.
The Court found that these provisions unfairly discriminate between mothers and fathers and between parents whose child is born of the mother, as opposed to surrogacy or adoption parents, in violation of the rights to equality and dignity of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa.
The declaration of invalidity has to be confirmed by the Constitutional Court.
The Charter stresses the value of social dialogue and collective bargaining and promotes and guarantees freedom of association for all employees in the workplace.
On 9 November 2023, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled that Article 7 of Directive 2003/88 on certain aspects of the organisation of working time, in particular annual leave, does not preclude national rules or practices that limit the entitlement to paid annual leave once an employee has returned to work after a long period of incapacity.
Long periods of illness, even consecutive ones can result in a worker's absence, which defeats the purpose of the leave itself, namely to help the worker rest and benefit from a period of relaxation.
Consequently, on his return, the employee has no absolute right to take it.
In April 2023, the Dutch Cabinet proposed a bill (Clarification of the Evaluation of Employment Relationships and the Legal Presumption) to clarify the legal assessment of employment relationships (when work must be performed as an employee and when it can be performed as a self-employed person).
On 6 October 2023, the Minister of Social Affairs and Labour opened the internet consultation on the legislative Proposal. During this time, interested parties were invited to comment and propose amendments. The consultation ended on 10 November 2023.
The Proposal is expected to enter into force on 1 July 2025.
On 10 October 2023, Barilla, Italian excellence in the production of food products, announced the adoption of a new maternity and paternity leave policy, which will be implemented from 1 January 2024 worldwide.
The policy will guarantee 12 weeks of fully paid leave for each parent, regardless of gender, marital status, and sexual orientation.
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