Jessica Agache-Gorse

Freelance
Most read articles by Jessica Agache-Gorse
United Kingdom: more and more companies break the menopause taboo in the workplace
An increasing number of companies in the UK are taking menopause-related symptoms into account in the workplace, with measures such as flexible work, manager training, consultation with experts...
27 February 2024
United Kingdom: occupational health taskforce launched
On 21 February, the UK government unveiled the Occupational Health Taskforce, which is being launched to reduce occupational illness, combat inactivity and raise awareness among employers of the...
23 February 2024
United Kingdom: ‘fire and rehire’ code of practice to come into force this summer
A year after launching a consultation on 'fire and rehire', the much-criticised practice of dismissing an employee only to rehire him or her on a less favourable contract, the UK government has...
United Kingdom: investigation into sexual harassment in the City
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the UK’s financial regulator, has ordered more than 1,000 banks, insurance companies and brokers to detail how many cases of sexual harassment...
20 February 2024
Latest articles by Jessica Agache-Gorse
Great Britain: building materials group Tarmac adds another element to its ongoing policy of supporting women in work
On 09 June, Tarmac announced that going forward it would be providing free period care products to all its female UK employees. This move is part of an overall policy to support and include women...
14 June 2023
United Kingdom: Aon creates carers’ leave allowance
Aon, the UK-headquartered insurance broker, provider of reinsurance and human capital consulting organisation, announced on 7 June the launch of a carers’ leave policy, which will allow its 6,000...
Great Britain: BCC launches a new national employers’ organisation
On 05 June and amid a series of scandals and allegations over an abusive corporate culture and senior management misconduct (including sexual harassment, assault, and rape) at the CBI...
Great Britain: Amazon UK offering employees employment contracts that are adapted to the school term time calendar
Called ‘Term-time contracts’, these employment contracts mean UK staff (75,000) do not work during their children’s school holidays. This new arrangement is currently only available for staff at...
United Kingdom: workplace standard issued for menopause and menstruation support
The British Standards Institute, the UK’s national standards body, has published a document setting out how employers should support staff dealing with menopause and menstruation. “The...
5 June 2023
United Kingdom: government reiterates commitment to fostering salary transparency
In response to an open letter published by the recruitment platform Liberty Hive, which in January launched a campaign calling for a law requiring salary transparency on the part of companies, the...
Great Britain: redundancy protection extended for expectant and new parents
On 24 May King Charles III signed the Protection from Redundancy (Pregnancy and Family Leave) Bill into law. Once in force, this legislation will afford pregnant women and new parents extended...
Great Britain: Marks & Spencer introduces special neonatal leave for parents of babies requiring this specialist care
The iconic UK retailer chain’s Neonatal Paid Leave policy now means its 65,000 employees can take up to 12 weeks fully paid if their baby requires specialist neonatal care. In this way the group...
Great Britain: union membership continues to fall in percentage and absolute terms
On 24 May the UK government published updated figures on trade union membership for the period 1995-2022, and according to which the proportion of union affiliated workers has fallen for the...
Great Britain: BT Group announces plans to replace current jobs with AI
On 18 May, the UK telecommunications giant said it intends to shed up to 55,000 jobs by 2030, with the bulk of the losses centred on its UK operations where its current headcount totals 80,000...
Great Britain: government launches consultation on reforming labour laws
At the end of 2023 some 600 EU regulations currently in place in the UK will cease to operate. The UK government has just published the list of those destined to be abolished and recently...
22 May 2023
Ireland: Vodafone introduces paid leave for caregivers
On 15 May, Vodafone Ireland, the UK telecommunications giant’s wholly owned Irish subsidiary announced its new ‘Caring for Vulnerable Others’ policy. The scheme will allow the...
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EU: Council curbs the Commission’s proposed easing of social safeguards in digital legislation
The news. On 21 October 2026, the Council of the EU agreed its negotiating mandate on the Digital Omnibus, proposed by the Commission in November 2025 to ease several provisions in digital...
Croatia: 7.6% minimum wage increase from 1 January 2027
The news. On 29 October, the Croatian Council of Ministers adopted a decree setting the minimum wage for 2027. This will rise from €1,050 to €1,130 gross per month from 1 January next...
UK: trade unions now have a statutory right of access to workplaces 
The news. Since 30 October, British trade unions (certified as independent) have been able to gain physical access to the premises of businesses with more than 21 employees in order to meet staff...
Spain: metal industry employers cut sick pay top-ups
To curb absenteeism, Spanish social partners in the metal sector are introducing new clauses into regional collective agreements to reduce the top-up payments made by employers during sick leave...
2 November 2026
Most viewed articles of the month on mind HR
What readers clicked on the most last month.
What readers clicked on the most last month.
1
Ireland: minimum wage increase of 5,6% from 1 January 2027
The info. The Irish government has included a minimum wage increase of 79 cents in its Budget 2027, in line with recommendations from the Low Pay Commission. The rate will rise from €14.15...
2
Denmark: government prepares implementation of pay transparency in March 2027
The news. On 8 October, the Danish executive submitted the bill transposing the European Pay Transparency Directive to the national Parliament. The text stems from an agreement between trade...
3
EU: social partners put the Commission in the crossfire over quality jobs
The news. The second phase of social partner consultation on quality jobs ended on 28 September. A mandatory prerequisite for a social initiative in accordance with the Treaty on the Functioning...
4
China: draft bill to strengthen platform workers’ rights
On 8 October, the Chinese government published a draft bill open for consultation aimed at providing minimum guarantees to non-employee platform workers in terms of pay and working conditions. The...
23 October 2026
5
Is a global wage freeze at Volkswagen possible?
The existence of an option to implement a global wage freeze until 2030 has been confirmed by the management of the German group Volkswagen, which nevertheless provides no details and refers to...
20 October 2026
6
France: paid leave for victims of sexual and domestic violence finally adopted
The news. On 13 October, the French National Assembly unanimously approved, among voting members, the “comprehensive bill” aimed at protecting victims of sexual and gender-based...