Hong Kong - APAC Employment Law Conference: Equal Pay, #MeToo, and Family Leave Rights across Asia Pacific

In April, UK companies with 250+ employees had to publish their gender pay gap data for the first time, the impact of which rippled across the globe. In China, legislators are planning new legislation to ban sexual harassment and make employers responsible for preventing it. In Hong Kong, paternity leave is set to be increased for the first time since its introduction in 2015 and in New Zealand, paid domestic violence leave has recently been brought in.

With equal pay dominating the headlines, the #MeToo movement gaining traction at varying speeds in different countries and the trend towards enhanced family-friendly rights, it is now more important than ever for employers to be aware of the law surrounding these matters, how they impact on the workplace and how to manage issues arising from these matters practically and effectively.

What do you do if a female employee complains to you that she is being paid less than a male peer who has the same job and seniority as her? How should you handle a situation where an employee complains that his boss has propositioned him and then threatened his job when he said no? You are implementing a retrenchment/redundancy exercise and one of the employees you issue with notice of termination informs you she is pregnant - what now?

You are invited to a morning panel discussion, hosted by Lewis Silkin and Rajah & Tann, both part of Ius Laboris (a leading international employment law practice), which will bring together experts in employment law from the Asia Pacific region to explore the above questions and, more generally, the laws related to equal pay, sexual harassment and family leave rights in their jurisdictions. We will be using practical case studies to bring the issues to life and there will be plenty of opportunity for questions and discussion.