News brief

United Kingdom: government launches push to “revolutionise” training post-Covid
Following its initial announcements in September last year (see article n°12155), the UK government plans to table its Skills and Post-16 Education Bill in parliament on 18 May. The...
17 May 2021
Britain: online bank Monzo creates paid leave for ART procedures
On 10 May, UK online bank Monzo announced that employees undergoing fertility procedures, as well as their partners, will be able to access an additional 8 days of paid leave per year. Employees...
12 May 2021
Belgium: special ‘corona’ bonus for employees (subject to conditions)
On Thursday 6 May, the Belgian government put forward the idea of granting an exceptional bonus to employees in companies that have recorded good results during the health crisis. The government...
7 May 2021
Italy: National Recovery and Resilience Plan includes a corporate gender-parity certification scheme
On 30 April the final version of Italy’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan was sent to the European Commission (c.f. article N°12490). This plan includes the introduction of a...
6 May 2021
Italy: the Labor Inspectorate (INL) and the Italian Data Protection Authority acting together on practices monitoring remote work
On 22 April, both the Labor Inspectorate (INL) and the Italian Data Protection Authority (GPDP), which had been called on to ‘address the challenges related to the more rapid digitalization...
5 May 2021
Ivory Coast: a new labor code will include telework regulations
On 01 May, Ivory Coast’s Minister of Employment and Social Protection, Adama Kamara, announced that the nation’s new Labour Code, which is currently being drafted, will be regulating...
4 May 2021
Women’s rights at the center of the G7 presidency
US$ 15 billion (€12,400 billion) over the next 2 years. This is financial support the UK government is helping to co-ordinate as the G7 host nation in order to fund businesses and services...
4 May 2021
Singapore: labour minister and social partners draw up charter to improve work-life balance
On 26 April Gan Siow Huang, Singapore’s minister of manpower, presented alongside the National Trades Union Congress and Singapore National Employers Federation a charter for so-called...
3 May 2021
ETUC research reveals the fall in workplace inspections across Europe raises Covid-19 risks
A European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) study of 22 countries is raising alarm bells over the fall in the number of labor inspections being carried out across Europe (c.f. below). According to...
29 April 2021
Great Britain: companies return more than £760 million from the furlough scheme
A total of 3,777 companies, including clothing giant Primark and online retailer Asos, have voluntarily returned some of the funds released by the government under its Coronavirus Job Retention...
28 April 2021
Spain: mutual insurance companies will soon be able to vaccinate staff in companies with more than 250 employees
The government and employers are preparing to sign an agreement that allows mutual insurance companies to assist in inoculating employees. The agreement between the CEOE employers’ body and...
27 April 2021
Colombia: a cross-institutional pact to fight child labor, especially in the context of the health crisis
The agreement, entitled “Compromiso Nacional por la Prevención y Erradicación del Trabajo Infantil y la Protección Integral al Adolescente Trabajador” (National...
22 April 2021
France: twenty new jobs added to the Covid-19 priority vaccination list
Following the conclusion of consultations on 20 April with the Ministry of Labor and the social partners, a list of some twenty private sector professions has been identified as priorities in...
21 April 2021
Germany: draft legislation being prepared to limit fixed-term employment contracts
In an interview with RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland (RND), Federal Minister of Labour and Social Affairs, Hubertus Heil detailed the contours of a future bill that is set to limit the use of...
15 April 2021
Ireland: parental leave extended to 5 weeks
As of 01 April 2021, parents of a child born or adopted on or after 01 November 2019, can now take an additional three weeks of parental leave bringing the total number to five weeks. The Family...
13 April 2021
Health crisis exposes shortcomings of EU member states’ welfare systems
European Union member states were all compelled by the Covid-19 pandemic to implement urgent reforms to their welfare systems. According to a study of social protection during the Covid-19...
9 April 2021
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
Italy: decree-law adopted to increase workplace safety
On 28 October, the Italian cabinet adopted a decree-law on health and safety at work, aimed at preventing and reducing accidents. The text addresses both the powers and actions of supervisory...
4 November 2025
2
Spain: already well on the way to pay transparency?
Spain is preparing for the implementation of its national law transposing the EU Pay Transparency Directive, which will take effect on 7 June 2026. The legislation marks another step forward in...
5 November 2025
3
Romania: parents of children with disabilities granted up to eight days of remote work per month
On 9 October, the Romanian parliament adopted a bill aiming to bolster support for parents of children with disabilities up to the age of 18. The legislation, which came into force on 12 October...
4
mind RH analysis – Initial findings from CSRD social indicators
In 2025, for the first time, the universal registration documents of major European companies contain the sustainability reporting required by the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive...
5
Netherlands: ING cites AI as it plans to cut around 950 jobs
Dutch bank ING has informed the employment agency UWV that it may cut around 950 jobs by 31 December 2026. In its notification on 20 October, the lender said the planned reductions stem partly...
30 October 2025
6
Italy: European pay transparency directive, a major step forward for businesses
Italy’s labour market continues to suffer from limited pay transparency and a persistent gender pay gap. The forthcoming implementation of the EU pay transparency directive — still awaiting...