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Making Tough Personnel Decisions in a Global Recession: Doing it Right and Minimizing Liability Africa and the Middle East Session June 29 & 30, 2009 © Employment Law Alliance 1 INTRODUCTION and OVERVIEW © Employment Law Alliance 2 Presenters Moderator – Karen Fulton Bowman Gilfillan, Johannesburg, South Africa [email protected] Anas Akel, Bafakih & Nassief, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia [email protected] Thomas Donovan, I&D Iraq Law Alliance, Baghdad, Iraq [email protected] Jonathan Feuchtwanger, Naschitz, Brandes & Co, Tel-Aviv, Israel [email protected] Yaron Horovitz, Naschitz, Brandes & Co, Tel-Aviv, Israel [email protected] Sara Khoja, Clyde & Co., Dubai, United Arab Emirates [email protected] Talita Laubscher, Bowman Gilfillan, Johannesburg, South Africa [email protected] Sonal Sejpal, Anjarwalla & Khanna Advocates, Nairobi, Kenya [email protected] © Employment Law Alliance 3 Layoff Decisions How Companies Are Saving Money on Personnel Costs Short of Layoffs • What are the legal challenges to implementing these decisions? • • • • • • • • Reducing overtime; Hiring freezes; Salary freezes; Salary reductions; Furloughs; Temporary shutdowns; Work-sharing arrangements; Shortened work weeks or workdays; • Eliminating training programs; • Boosting healthcare premiums; • Creating incentives for employees to voluntarily resign or retire. © Employment Law Alliance 4 Layoff Decisions How To Make These Decisions Bullet Proof • What are the biggest challenges when making these decisions? • What are the most common legal claims being asserted today on behalf of laid off workers and how could they have been avoided? © Employment Law Alliance 5 Separation Agreements and Releases • Are they commonly used in your country? • Are they enforceable? • What must these agreements contain? • What should these agreements contain? • Must an employee be given advance notice before signing such an agreement? • Are there any specific issues in your jurisdiction? © Employment Law Alliance 6 Severance Pay and Benefits • Does your country have statutory severance pay requirements? If so, what do I need to know? • Does your country require that certain benefits continue following termination? • Do your clients typically provide severance pay and enhanced benefits beyond what is required by law? What kind of circumstances? • Do you require that a release be signed? • Are your clients using “stay until close” bonuses and if so, what challenges are they facing? © Employment Law Alliance 7 Advance Notice for Terminations • Does your country require that employees receive a certain amount of advance notice before a layoff? • Are there any exceptions? • If there is a trade union or works council involved, what does the law require you to do? © Employment Law Alliance 8 • How are your clients coordinating the implementation of worldwide layoffs? © Employment Law Alliance 9 Lessons Learned from Bad Personnel Decisions Made During Tough Economic Times • What should have been done differently? © Employment Law Alliance 10 CONCLUSION Thank you for attending our webinar. Immediately after you disconnect, a survey will appear on your computer screen asking you to evaluate the webinar. We would appreciate your taking a few minutes to complete it so that we can continue to improve the quality and delivery of future ELAsponsored webinars. To listen to past webinars, please visit our website at: www.employmentlawalliance.com. © Employment Law Alliance 11