Ogletree Deakins Podcasts Ogletree Deakins

In this episode of our Cross-Border Catch-Up podcast series, Shirin Aboujawde (New York) and Eric Lee (New York) discuss significant amendments to Japan’s discretionary labor system. The amendments require employers to specify, in their employment agreements, whether there will be changes to the location and scope of employment and to state renewal limits for fixed-term contracts. Eric and Shirin, both of whom are members of the firm’s Cross-Border Practice Group, also address the steep legal standard for termination of employment in Japan and the narrow exemption from overtime. They wrap up with a discussion of new health and safety requirements related to rest periods, late-night work, and limits on working hours.

In this episode of our Cross-Border Catch-Up podcast series, Shirin Aboujawde and Eric Lee highlight recent labor and employment developments from around the globe. Shirin and Eric, both of whom are members of Ogletree Deakins’ Cross-Border Practice Group, review the new mandatory leave entitlements in Italy and comment on the challenge for cross-border employers to develop compliant policies as parental leave protections expand in Singapore. They also review the trend of broader pay equity laws, such as those recently adopted in Shanghai and Brazil; a new measure in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) that requires employers to hire UAE nationals; and an Australian law that forbids employment discrimination against employees suffering from family and domestic violence.

In this episode of the Cross-Border Catch-Up, Shirin Aboujawde (of counsel, New York) is joined by Skye Hao (associate, Atlanta) for a fast-paced review of Shirin’s 5 favorite jurisdictions worldwide for employers. Shirin offers a synopsis of the employment law landscape in Switzerland, Hong Kong, Singapore, the United Kingdom, and the United Arab Emirates. Skye and Shirin discuss the favorable factors in these jurisdictions’ employment laws, such as whether they offer employees a right to reinstatement; the extent that they require payments at the end of the employment relationship; the ease with which employers can terminate the employment relationship (including caps on damages); and the ease with which employers can make changes to the terms and conditions of employment.

In this podcast, shareholders Kevin Bland (Orange County) and Karen Tynan (Sacramento) discuss California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA). Karen, who is the West Coast chair of Ogletree’s Workplace Safety and Health Practice Group, and Kevin have a wide-ranging conversation touching on all aspects of Cal/OSHA, from organizational structure to the roles played by inspectors, district and regional managers, and the legal unit. They also share tips on how Cal/OSHA differs from federal OSHA and other state plans.

In this installment of our Safety Perspectives From the Dallas Region podcast series, Frank Davis (shareholder, Dallas) and John Surma (shareholder, Houston) are joined by Milwaukee shareholder Eric Hobbs, who is the chair of the firm’s Workplace Safety and Health Practice Group. The speakers discuss the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) continued focus on ergonomics, including in some National Emphasis Programs (NEPs) and as part of the proposed Warehouse Worker Protection Act (WWPA). They also discuss whether OSHA’s recent standard interpretation means that certain common treatments may lead to the finding of a recordable restricted duty.

In this podcast recorded at Ogletree Deakins’ national Workplace Strategies seminar, Michael Eckard (office managing shareholder, Charleston) is joined by Bonnie Martin (office managing shareholder, Indianapolis) and Andy Tanick (shareholder, Minneapolis) to discuss recent legal developments in the area of religious accommodations under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act since the Supreme Court’s ruling in Groff v. DeJoy. The speakers discuss how the murky Groff ruling has left unanswered questions about what constitutes an “undue hardship” for religious accommodation requests. They also discuss the open questions regarding what qualifies as “sincerely held” and “religious beliefs,” as new contexts for these claims arise—including complaints about the use of preferred pronouns, DEI initiatives, and more.