Listen to this post

Proud to share that Jennifer Bernardo was recently spotlighted in Precedent Magazine. Jen is a stellar advocate for her clients and, in this profile, she shares how her office is an extension of her life, filled with items that help her thrive in her litigation practice.

The article is accessible here.

Listen to this post

With special thanks to our presenters Benjamin Ho (United States),  Matías Herrero (Argentina), Leticia Ribeiro (Trench Rossi Watanabe, Sao Paulo*), Maria Cecilia Reyes (Colombia) and Liliana Hernandez-Salgado (Mexico).

In this session, US-based multinational employers with business operations in the Americas region hear directly from Benjamin Ho and local practitioners on the major developments they need to know, and come away with practical tips and takeaways to implement.

Please click here to view a recording of the webinar highlighting the Americas.

Click here to view the program details and to watch recordings of any sessions you may have missed.

Listen to this post

Special thanks to co-authors Julia Webster and Jing Xu, and contributor Oscar Ramirez (articling student in our Toronto office).

This article provides an overview of the global rise in human and labor rights legislation linked to trade measures and how this impacts the consumer goods and retail industry.

We examine:

  • Canada’s efforts to enforce the existing import prohibitions on goods mined or manufactured with forced labor under the Customs Tariff
  • Compliance under the recently passed Bill S-211, Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act and to amend the Customs Tariff, which comes into force on 1 January 2024
  • The need for organizations doing business in Canada to develop compliance measures on the import prohibition under the Customs Tariff, the new reporting requirements under Bill S-211, and the importance of continuing enterprise and supply chain scrutiny.

Click here to access full alert.

Listen to this post

We are pleased to share a recent Canadian HR Reporter article, “What do employers in Quebec need to know about new OHS rules?,” with insight from Ajanthana Anandarajah.

The article discusses new rules and policies employers need to follow now that remote workers are legally recognized in Quebec. Updates include remote work recognition, new hazard identifications and protection plans.

The article is accessible here.

Listen to this post

Special thanks to co-authors, Krissy Katzenstein, Brad Newman, Robin J. Samuel, and Julia Wilson.

Amid recent hype around ChatGPT and generative artificial intelligence (AI), many are eager to harness the technology’s increasingly sophisticated potential.

However, findings from Baker McKenzie’s 2022 North America AI survey indicate that business leaders may currently underappreciate AI-related risks to their organization. Only 4% of C-suite level respondents said they consider the risks associated with using AI to be “significant,” and less than half said they have AI expertise at the board level.

These figures spotlight a concerning reality: many organizations are underprepared for AI, lacking the proper oversight and expertise from key decision-makers to manage risk. And if unaddressed, organizational blind spots around the technology’s ethical and effective deployment are likely to overshadow transformative opportunities while causing organizations to lose pace with the explosive growth of the technology.

Click here to continue reading this article.

Original article published in World Economic Forum.

Listen to this post

Special thanks to Jose (Pepe) Larroque, Salvador Pasquel Villegas, and Martha Mayorga-Luna.

“Nearshoring” in Mexico is a hot topic for multinational companies considering moving business and manufacturing closer to home. COVID-19-era global supply chain disruptions and changes to the global economy are causing companies to reexamine their sourcing options and relocating to Mexico has much appeal. According to an analysis by the McKinsey Global Institute, in 2021, American investors put more money into Mexico – buying companies and financing projects – than into China. 

Our team is advising on both the business opportunities and the potential challenges from an employment perspective when transferring business services and production to Mexico. 

In this Quick Chat video, our Labor & Employment lawyers along with the Managing Partner for Baker McKenzie’s Mexico offices discuss key nuances of the new labor subcontracting laws in Mexico, the current labor collective environment, considerations for companies operating under an IMMEX Program, and more. Listen in for practical tips to navigate this new business horizon. 

Click here to watch the video.

Listen to this post

Special thanks to Eloise Somera (articling student in our Toronto office) for co-authoring.

Before the end of 2023, and every three years thereafter, all businesses or non-profits with twenty or more employees in Ontario must confirm their ongoing compliance with the accessibility requirements under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 (AODA) and submit an accessibility compliance report to the Ontario Government. The same reporting requirement applies to designated public sector organizations, but they must submit an accessibility compliance report every two years.

Failure to submit an accessibility compliance report can lead to significant penalties and fines by the Ontario Ministry of Labour (the Ministry).

Required Self-Assessment

AODA’s accessibility compliance report is intended to be an organization’s self-assessment of its compliance with Ontario’s accessibility requirements, including a confirmation that the organization is complying with the Accessibility Standards. The types of questions a business must answer will depend on what organization category it falls into (i.e., business or non-profit, designated public sector, or Ontario public service/Ontario Legislative Assembly). This is because different businesses are subject to different accessibility requirements under AODA. (Electronic copies of the applicable form can be downloaded on the government’s website here.)

As a business, non-profit, or a designated public sector organization, the organization can expect to answer questions regarding whether it:

  • employs any person with disabilities for whom it has provided individualized workplace emergency response information;
  • provides appropriate training on AODA, which includes the Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation;
  • provides appropriate training on Ontario’s Human Rights Code as it pertains to people with disabilities; and
  • has implemented a multi-year accessibility plan, and if yes, whether that plan is posted on the organization’s website, and whether it is updated at least once every five (5) years.
Continue Reading Workplace Accessibility Reports Under Ontario’s AODA Due By December 31, 2023
Listen to this post

Special thank you to co-presenters, Sarah Bahn and Daniel Urdiain.

Our on-the-ground immigration and mobility attorneys explore considerations for US employers looking to send foreign national employees to work in Canada or Mexico if they were not selected in the H-1B visa lottery this year and what steps to take before the next H-1B cap lottery period opens.

Click here to watch the video.

Listen to this post

Special thanks to co-presenters, Krissy Katzenstein and Kaitlin Thompson.

With a surge in layoffs taking place over the past year, many of those originally hired to diversify the workplace have been impacted, and studies show that inclusion, diversity and equity (ID&E) professionals have been affected by layoffs at a higher rate than others. The harm? Other than potentially hurting employee morale and sidelining efforts to improve ID&E in the workplace, employers risk exposing themselves to litigation.

In this installment of ID&E IMPACT, our labor and employment team in the US and Canada explore employer concerns including an uptick in discrimination and harassment claims, the proliferation of claims based on pay disparity, bias claims arising from the use of AI in recruitment and hiring, and practical tips to mitigate risk from an ID&E perspective. 

Click here to watch the video.

Listen to this post

Join us for a four-part webinar series as our US moderators welcome colleagues from around the globe to share the latest labor and employment law updates and trends. US-based multinational employers with business operations in Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and the Americas regions will hear directly from local practitioners on the major developments they need to know, and come away with practical tips and takeaways to implement.

In each 60-minute discussion, we will explore:

  • The impact of the current economic and political climate on multinational employers
  • The current restructuring and cost-cutting landscape (benchmarking & jurisdiction-specific hurdles to plan for)
  • New significant legislative developments
  • Local hot topics in the inclusion, diversity and equity (ID&E) space

We look forward to welcoming you at the sessions relevant to your business — no passport or line ups for customs necessary!

ASIA PACIFIC
Australia, China, the Philippines and Singapore
Wednesday, May 3, 2023
3 pm PT/ 6 pm ET
Click here to register.

EUROPE
France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and the UK
Wednesday, May 10, 2023
9 am PT/ 12 pm ET
Click here to register.

THE MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
Egypt, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Türkiye and the UAE
Wednesday, May 17, 2023
9 am PT/ 12 pm ET
Click here to register.

THE AMERICAS
Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Colombia and Mexico
Wednesday, May 24, 2023
9 am PT/ 12 pm ET
Click here to register.

To view these programs in a different time zone, click here
Please “register” for a copy of the recording and materials if you are unable to attend live.

To view the complete roster of presenters for each regional program, click here.