Italy, France, Germany, Sweden and USA: Dress code and appearance policies

Personal dress and appearance is a common way individuals express their personality, including their political and religious views. Unfortunately, the personal choices individuals make in attire, hairstyle and other personal appearance factors may collide with workplace rules, creating conflicts. Federal U.S. law does not directly regulate employer dress codes or appearance policies. However, it does prohibit employers from discriminating against employees based on a number…

Sweden: New regulatory and case law developments

As of 1 January 2017 a number of changes in the Swedish Discrimination Act have entered into force. The changes are briefly summarized below. 1. Since before, the Discrimination Act requires all employers to take active measures to bring about equal rights and opportunities in the workplace regardless of gender, ethnicity and religion. This requirement has now been extended to comprise all seven grounds for…

Drug abuse and employment law in Europe

Most of the time, taking medication in the workplace creates no problems. Most prescription drugs have little impact on an employee’s ability to work safely. Some drugs, however may affect the employee’s safety or ability to focus. There is therefore considerable potential for prescription drugs to raise problems in the workplace. Indeed, when faced with this issue, employers, who generally have a safety obligation towards…

Sweden reduces non-compete periods

The confederation of Swedish Enterprise (Swe: Svenskt Näringsliv) and the Federation of Salaried Employees in Industry and Services (Swe: PTK) have negotiated a new collective bargaining agreement on non-compete clauses (“the New Non-Compete Agreement”) that replaces the previous agreement from 1969. The New Non-Compete Agreement will apply to non-compete clauses entered into by employers bound by it as of 1 December 2015. The New Non-Compete Agreement…

New provisions regarding organizational and social work environment in Sweden

The Swedish Work Environment Authority has issued new provisions governing the organizational and social work environment. The provisions apply to all activities where employees perform work on behalf of an employer. The purpose of the provisions is to promote a good work environment and prevent risk of ill health due to organizational and social conditions in the work environment. The provisions stipulate, among other things,…