The United Kingdom Flexible Working Act

In 2002, the United Kingdom passed new legislation granting employees with young or disabled children the right to request flexible work arrangements from their employers. The law does not guarantee a right to flexible working but seeks to increase flexibility in UK workplaces by requiring a process for negotiation between employees and employers. Stated simply, that process places the initial responsibility on the employee to propose a new work arrangement and explain its potential impact on the employer. The employee and employer must then consider the request together, and the employer may refuse the request only for certain business reasons

The Federal Employees Flexible and Compressed Work Schedules Act (FEFCWA)

Federal law establishes scheduling requirements for government employees, generally requiring federal agencies to set regular work hours over a traditional Monday through Friday workweek. These requirements, along with provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), impede flexible work arrangements (FWAs) for federal employees.1 The Federal Employees Flexible and Compressed Work Schedules Act (“FEFCWA”) removes these legal barriers for two specific types of alternative work schedules (AWS): flexible work schedules (FWS) and compressed work schedules (CWS). Under an FWS, an agency establishes core hours when all employees must be at work and allows employees to choose arrival and departure times around those core hours. Under a CWS, an employee’s bi-weekly, 80-hour work requirement is scheduled by the agency for less than 10 days (e.g., eight 10-hour workdays rather than ten 8-hour workdays)

Content Legislation

This article is part of the collection of writings of Marshall (Mike) Westfall, retired autoworker from General Motors in Flint, Michigan (1964-1994) and activist critic of the auto industry restructuring that led to devastating job losses. It originally appeared online in The Westfall Papers. [http://michaelwestfall.tripod.com/id76.html, accessed 12/14/2011

Pay Equity Legislation

[Excerpt] The issue of pay equity has attracted substantial attention in recent Congresses. A number of measures, including bills that would provide additional remedies, mandate “equal pay for equivalent jobs,” or require studies on pay inequity, have been introduced in each of the last several congressional sessions. In the 111th Congress, similar legislation has been introduced, including the Paycheck Fairness Act (H.R. 12/S. 182/S. 3772), the Fair Pay Act (H.R. 2151/S. 904), and the Title VII Fairness Act (S. 166). In addition, on January 29, 2009, President Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 (H.R. 11/S. 181). This legislation supersedes the 2007 Supreme Court decision in Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., Inc., by amending Title VII to clarify that the time limit for suing employers for pay discrimination begins each time they issue a paycheck. Although the House of Representatives passed both the Ledbetter legislation and the Paycheck Fairness Act as a combined package, the Senate did not combine the two bills and has not yet taken up the latter for a vote. Recently, however, Senator Reid reintroduced the Paycheck Fairness Act as S. 3772, and the bill has been placed on the Senate calendar

Belgian cybercrime provisions

Belgian cybercrime provisions. Unofficial English translation – Consolidated version by Johan Vandendriessche