SHRM

The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM)

I’ve written nearly 100 articles about global labor topics for SHRM (The Society for Human Resource Management). With a focus on work, workers, and the workplace throughout the world, my writing has explored cryptocurrency, urban planning, entrepreneurship, elder rights, surveillance, and other topics globally. Here’s a sample of my labor and employment law writing.

Shortened Workweek Is Common in Iceland

The concept of a shorter workweek had been percolating for a few years in Icelandic society. In 2014, the city council of Reykjavik decided to launch a series of trials to test out a shortened workweek. Those trials launched in 2015.

"[The shorter workweek] was pushed by unions, who recognized that overwork was a particularly significant problem in Iceland, particularly compared to some of its close neighbors in Scandinavia," said Jack Kellam, a researcher at Autonomy in Cambridge, U.K., who co-authored a report on the shortening of the workweek in Iceland.

During the trials, most workplaces shortened their hours from 40 hours per week to 36 or 35 hours, making it a four-and-a-half-day workweek. Despite some trepidation from both employers and workers, the results were generally positive.

https://www.shrm.org/topics-tools/news/shortened-workweek-common-iceland

Gender Discrimination in the Chinese Workplace

When Professor Hsiu-hua Shen of National Tsing Hua University in Taipei, Taiwan, went to Beijing to conduct research on gender discrimination issues, she started hearing stories from friends looking for jobs. The women told her that they often weren't asked to come in for interviews, or if they were, the topic would drift to their current and future children. Over and over, they encountered the assumption that they would be having children, which would distract them from the job. Companies, it turned out, were reluctant to hire—or even interview—female candidates, because of this gender discrimination.

In China, it's difficult for women to seek protection from pregnancy discrimination or sexual harassment, Shen said. Shen's friends are not alone. Gender discrimination in the workplace is widespread in China, from the interview stage to potential promotions for current employees. According to a Catalyst report from 2020, 19 percent of civil service job postings noted a preference for male candidates, while other listings specified that female candidates should already have children.

In 2019, a law was passed that explicitly prohibits gender discrimination in job listings, but according to experts, it hasn't made much of a difference.

https://www.shrm.org/topics-tools/news/gender-discrimination-chinese-workplace

Canada: Surreptitious Workplace Recordings May Have Consequences

He knew it was wrong. The financial analyst had spent years recording his co-workers surreptitiously, capturing personal information and sensitive business matters on hundreds of recordings, without ever revealing what he was doing. He claimed it was to help him improve his English. At the time he was terminated without cause, his company was not aware of his recordings. When they came out in discovery, the termination was reclassified as "for cause."

"The court ultimately found that the length and nature of the recordings constituted a fundamental breach of trust, and the employer did have cause to terminate the plaintiff's employment; that means he does not get notice or pay in lieu of notice on termination," said Keri Bennett, an attorney with Roper Greyell in Vancouver.

With an increase in remote work and the prevalence of phones that can function as recording devices, recordings of workplace conversations are an issue that companies should pre-emptively address and that employees should be aware of within the structure of their organization.

https://www.shrm.org/topics-tools/news/canada-surreptitious-workplace-recordings-may-consequences