For a second year in a row VOW's Chris Van Olmen has contributed to the Getting The Deal Through Guide Labour & Employment section for Belgium on Lexology. This years GTDT has expanded considerably and can be consulted for free on the website of Lexology, where it is also possible to download it as a PDF (you can also find this download below).
The GTDT - Labour and Employment also contains chapters for 50 countries. The compare tool allows you (after you create a login) to easily make a comparison between the applicable rules of different jurisdictions of your choice, regarding the topics which you are interested in.
The Labour and Employment section provides on overview on the following topics:
LEGISLATION AND AGENCIES
- Primary and secondary legislation
- Protected employee categories
- Enforcement agencies
WORKER REPRESENTATION
- Legal basis
- Powers of representatives
BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS
- Background checks
- Medical examinations
- Drug and alcohol testing
HIRING OF EMPLOYEES
- Preference and discrimination
- Probationary period
- Classification as contractor or employee
- Temporary agency staffing
FOREIGN WORKERS
- Visas
- Spouses
- General rules
- Resident labour market test
TERMS OF EMPLOYMENT
- Working hours
- Overtime pay
- Vacation and holidays
- Sick leave and sick pay
- Leave of absence
- Mandatory employee benefits
- Part-time and fixed-term employees
- Public disclosures
POST-EMPLOYMENT RESTRICTIVE COVENANTS
- Validity and enforceability
- Post-employment payments
LIABILITY FOR ACTS OF EMPLOYEES
- Extent of liability
TAXATION OF EMPLOYEES
- Applicable taxes
EMPLOYEE-CREATED IP
- Ownership rights
- Trade secrets and confidential information
DATA PROTECTION
- Rules and obligations
BUSINESS TRANSFERS
- Employee protections
TERMINATION OF EMPLOYMENT
- Grounds for termination
- Notice
- Severance pay
- Procedure
- Employee protections
- Mass terminations and collective dismissals
- Class and collective actions
- Mandatory retirement age
DISPUTE RESOLUTION
- Arbitration
- Employee waiver of rights
- Limitation period
UPDATE AND TRENDS
- Key developments of the past year