Labor Law Research Articles

Employment law changes and developments for 2024

Employment law changes and developments for 2024

Productivity and wage gaps between informal and formal firms in India: Trends and determinants

ABSTRACT This study examines the productivity and wage gaps between informal and formal sector firms in India. Using a comprehensive dataset covering a 15-year period, we explore the influence of access to finance, infrastructure, and labor regulations on these gaps. Employing standard Oaxaca decomposition method, we analyze the role of these factors in explaining the informal–formal gaps in wages and productivity. Our results reveal significant and expanding gaps in both productivity and wages between informal and formal firms. Decomposition analysis suggests firm characteristics and infrastructure as primary factors widening the gaps, while access to finance and flexible labor regulations help narrow them. The findings point to the importance of targeted interventions needed to augment the growth and development of the informal manufacturing sector. Policies that enhance access to finance, improve infrastructure, and promote favorable labor markets can contribute to narrowing the gaps.

Employment of Graduates in the Fields of Teacher Education and Education Science in Vietnam

Using data from the Labour Force Survey in 2018, 2019, and 2020, this paper is the first to analyze the employment issues of workers with university degrees in the fields of teacher education and education science in Vietnam. The results show that about 90% of the workers employed in the public sector and about 85% doing the jobs matched their field of study. However, the proportion of workers with matched jobs is much lower for those without social insurance and without a formal labor contract. The percentage of workers having social insurance and formal labor contracts is higher for those with mismatched jobs (about 98%) than for those with matched jobs (about 90%). The results of probit regression reveal that age and job sectors have a significant impact on the probability of workers having social insurance and formal labor contracts, while job mismatch has a negligible effect on the probability of workers having formal labor contracts.

Rightless rurality: the illegalization of Myanmar migrant laborers in Thailand’s agro-industry

ABSTRACT This paper explores relations of production in contemporary agrarian capitalism through the case of rural-rural migration from Myanmar to Thailand. It focuses on the often-overlooked rural proletariat, in this case, illegalized migrant laborers. It shows how migrants live and work in precarity, and argues that their social position is a result of practices of illegalization deployed by state authorities, local police, and farmers, which control and immobilize migrants socio-economically, spatially and politically. The paper adds to debates on the agrarian question of labor, stressing capital and (il)licit law enforcement as co-constitutive in shaping exploitation in the agro-industry.

Indonesia Employment in 2023: Labor Force Conditions and Policy Developments in the Early Stages of the Demographic Bonus

In 2023, amidst the complexities of a volatile global economy, Indonesia demonstrated economic resilience, propelled by its dynamic workforce. This abstract synthesizes the intricate interplay between macroeconomic forces and employment trends within Indonesia, drawing from comprehensive data analyses and policy evaluations. The report encapsulates a year marked by economic recovery despite global headwinds such as the Russia-Ukraine conflict, inflation surges, and supply chain interruptions. With a predicted global growth of 3.6% by the IMF, Indonesia's economy experienced fluctuations but maintained a growth trajectory from Q2 2022 to Q2 2023. Labor force data indicates a predominance of the working-age population, signaling potential for sustained productivity and economic fortitude. The demographic composition, skewed towards a younger populace, underpins the vibrant labor market. Employment policies have been responsive to digitalization, globalization, and demographic transitions, focusing on skill development, vocational training, and job safety. Notably, vocational training for SMK graduates was prioritized to match industry requirements. Regulatory advancements aim to balance worker protections with corporate operational efficiency. Amidst COVID-19's lingering impact, policy adaptations were crucial to support workers and businesses, exemplifying Indonesia’s agility in times of crisis. The landscape of employment disputes, predominantly centered around termination, underscores the necessity for robust conflict resolution mechanisms. With 71.15% of industrial disputes tied to terminations, mediation emerged as the preferred dispute resolution strategy. Regional data unveiled disparities in job placements and complaints, spotlighting the need for equitable workforce distribution and grievance redressal mechanisms. The report concludes that Indonesia's labor policies and employment conditions are dynamically evolving, poised to sculpt a robust, inclusive, and sustainable labor market landscape.

Legal regulation of labor of internally displaced persons in Ukraine

Purpose. To study the regulatory and legal provision of labor regulation of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Ukraine. To identify the impact of changes in legislative norms regarding this issue on the effectiveness of legal regulation of IDP labor. To develop recommendations for clarification of legal provisions and propose directions for reducing potential conflict. Methodology. The following methods are used: analysis and synthesis made it possible to substantiate the importance of regulating labor of IDPs; logical generalization – to indicate that legal regulation in judicial practice should be based on the essential content of the basic citizen rights; comparative analysis – to point out the inappropriate level of imperativeness in the legislation regarding legal protection of IDPs; logical generalization – to propose a tool for pre-trial dispute resolution; formal-legal and special-legal methods – to develop changes to legislative provisions. Findings. Problematic issues of regulating the right of IDPs to work are indicated. It is noted that the regulation of the right to work is much broader than the problems of employment of IDPs. The inappropriateness of the level of imperativeness of legislative norms regulating the right of IDPs to work is indicated. A need is justified for pre-trial consideration of disputes regarding protection of the right to work. It is proposed to introduce an institute of mediator lawyers for this purpose. In order to avoid discrimination of IDPs in employment and defamation in the performance of duties under an employment contract, amendments to the Code of Labor Laws are proposed. Originality. Measures to strengthen the imperative of the norms of the current legislation aimed at regulating the labor of IDPs are proposed. Changes to the provisions of the current Laws of Ukraine and directions for reducing the potential for conflict in this area are proposed. Practical value. The implementation of the proposed recommendations on changes to the provisions of the current legislation will contribute to the legal regulation of the labor of IDPs.

Nurse Staffing, Work Hours, Mandatory Overtime, and Turnover in Acute Care Hospitals Affect Nurse Job Satisfaction, Intent to Leave, and Burnout: A Cross-Sectional Study

Objectives: This study examined the impact of nurse staffing, working hours, mandatory overtime, and turnover on nurse outcomes in acute care hospitals. Previous studies have focused on the single characteristics of sub-optimal nurse staffing but have not considered them comprehensively.Methods: Data were collected in July–September 2022 using convenience sampling and an online survey (N = 397). For the analysis, 264 nurses working as staff nurses at 28 hospitals met the inclusion criteria. Univariate analysis and multivariable generalized estimating equation (GEE) were performed.Results: Both nurse staffing (β = −0.036, standard error [SE] = 0.011) and turnover (β = −0.006, SE = 0.003) were significant factors affecting job satisfaction. In the multivariable GEE, only mandatory overtime (β = 0.395, SE = 0.116) was significantly related to intent to leave. Nurse staffing, work hours, mandatory overtime, and turnover were not significantly related to burnout. Subjective health status and workload were significantly associated with burnout.Conclusion: Nurse staffing policies and improvement programs in hospitals should be implemented to improve nurses’ job satisfaction. Labor policy should ban mandatory overtime.

Re-politicising Anti-Trafficking: Migration, labour, and the war in Ukraine

Drawing on multi-method research, this article demonstrates that the risks of large-scale trafficking due to the war in Ukraine were mitigated by granting Ukrainians more extensive rights than typically afforded to refugees. This shows the advantages of rights-based approaches to migration and labour exploitation. We draw on Bakhtin’s and Žižek’s work on the carnivalesque to argue that mainstream anti-trafficking initiatives—which are depoliticised and able to win support and funding from across the political spectrum—often serve merely as theatrical and distracting sideshows diverting attention from more impactful activities and the normalised exploitation within capitalism. However, avoiding trafficking is insufficient if Ukrainian citizens and residents still endure exploitative conditions. A weakened legal framework for workers’ rights within Ukraine alongside inadequate labour protections across Europe have facilitated such exploitation. In contrast to the depoliticised stance of the anti-trafficking industry, this article concludes that more explicitly political actions supporting migrants’ rights, workers’ rights, and access to welfare and public services will not only more effectively challenge trafficking but also prevent other exploitation of migrants.

Gender-age peculiarities of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) in tuberculosis in a high-density region: a retrospective cohort study

Background. Infections associated with socially significant diseases considerably contribute to a decrease in the quality of public health. Tuberculosis, though declining in Russia, is still recognized as a pressing public health problem. Meanwhile, an assessment of the burden of tuberculosis on society, using such comprehensive methods as measuring disability-adjusted life years, is yet to be investigated in Russia. Objective. To estimate the tuberculosis burden by calculating the index of disability adjusted life years in a high-density region.Methods. The retrospective cohort study involved data on newly-diagnosed and died of tuberculosis cases that corresponded to the annual reporting form of federal statistical surveillance No. 8 “Information on active tuberculosis cases” for the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania; information on patients who died of tuberculosis or tuberculosis combined with infection caused by human immunodeficiency virus, was obtained from the Department of Civil Status Records of the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania and verified with data from the Federal State Statistics Service; data on tuberculosis-associated disability was received from Main Bureau of Medical and Social Expertise in the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Russian Federation for 2018 and 2022. Following the analytic dataset, 691 people with newly-diagnosed tuberculosis, who received TB-associated disability and died from TB in 2018 (318 people) and 2022 (373 people) were identified. The study involved calculation of gender and age standardized TB morbidity and mortality rates as well as DALY index with its components: Years of Life Lost due to tuberculosis and Years Lost due to Disability. The study involved comparing data between 2018 and 2022 and gender/age-specific indicators within the same year. Mathematical data processing was performed using Microsoft Excel 2017 (Microsoft Corporation, USA) and SPSS 26.0 (SPSS Inc., USA). Differences between the compared indicators were evaluated by Chi-square criterion with variations, the initial data were grouped in a contingency table, the significance of differences was expressed by p-value.Results. The burden of tuberculosis in the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania refers predominantly to the male population: with a gender difference in the decrease in the disability-adjusted life years in 2018 and 2022 by 4.4 and 9.0 times (p < 0.05), respectively; 2.8 times among males, 5.5 times among females (p < 0.05). The burden of tuberculosis is mainly associated with premature mortality due to tuberculosis among males aged 35–54 years and among females aged 35–44 years with a pronounced decrease in Years of Life Lost. Years of Life Lost among males aged 20–34 in 2022 appears two times higher than the cohort average. The increase in Years of Life Lost among males aged 60–64 accounted for 1.7 times, in Years Lost Due to Disability — 11.2 times (p < 0.05). Years Lost Due to Disability among females aged 20–44 years appeared to be the highest, exceeding the cohort average by more than two times in 2018.Conclusion. The burden of tuberculosis is predominantly due to tuberculosis-related premature mortality among the male population. According to the disturbing conclusion, Years of Life Lost among young males aged 20–34 years and tuberculosis-related premature mortality shift towards the male population of pre-retirement age (60–64 years) with an increase in Years Lost Due to Disability among them. Notably, the study reveals high rates of Years Lost Due to Disability among females aged 20–44. The results obtained should be taken into account when developing regional tuberculosis programs with their targeted use in “vulnerable” age and gender groups of the population.

Impact of Ship Noise on Seafarers’ Sleep Disturbances and Daily Activities: An Analysis of Fatigue Increase and Maritime Accident Risk through a Survey

This study delves into the impact of ship noise on seafarer well-being, emphasizing fatigue—a significant contributor to maritime accidents due to human error. The investigation, centered around the hypothesis that IMO ship construction standards may not adequately minimize noise levels in seafarer cabins, seeks to establish whether these levels are sufficient to ensure seafarer security and prevent sleep disturbances. According to current IMO regulations, noise levels are set at 55 dB for vessels under 10,000 gross tonnage and 60 dB for those over 10,000, yet WHO guidelines recommend a maximum of 40 dB in bedrooms to avoid sleep disruption. A comprehensive survey involving 221 cadets demonstrates that 79.6% of participants experience sleep disturbances, work disruptions, and stress due to noise, indicating that the present noise standards are insufficient. This paper argues that reducing noise levels in individual cabins to below 40 dB is critical for enhancing seafarer health and safety and could significantly reduce human error-related maritime accidents. The findings advocate for more stringent noise control measures and regulatory reforms to bridge the knowledge gaps and improve labor protection in the maritime industry.

Labor Relations Issues and Governance in the Platform Economy: A Case Study of 'Online Ride-Hailing Drivers'

With the rapid development of the times, new economic forms emerge endlessly, and more and more people are seeking work and rewards through the platform economy. The concept of "ride-hailing" has quickly entered people's sight due to its speed and high comfort level. However, due to the imperfections of the platform economy and the virtual nature of the internet, issues faced by "ride-hailing drivers" continue to emerge: lack of signed labor contracts, difficulty in guaranteeing rest time, inadequate labor laws, etc., naturally causing certain negative impacts on the new economic industry. In this article, we will discuss the issues of labor relations under the platform economy from the perspective of "ride-hailing drivers" and propose reasonable governance measures.

Unveiling Construction Quality Factors: Insights from Asian Economy's Building Projects

Economic growth of any country depends on the construction projects and industry in the region. Therefore, the construction industry in Pakistan is directly related to quality and continual improvements in construction projects. Quality is a sensitive and high-priority issue in global construction including in Pakistan. The prime objective of this research study was to investigate major factors influencing the quality of building construction projects in Pakistan. The intended of this research study was to provide guidelines and information to all stakeholders such as owners, project consultants, and project contractors during the construction site of projects so that they are completed on time and with quality. The descriptive survey method was utilized with both qualitative and quantitative approaches. Qualitative approach was used to collect data through project documents and in-depth interviews. N-Vivo software were used at the preliminary stage for the analysis of qualitative data to identify these factors and the linked sub-factors. Analysis of this qualitative data identified 32 factors that influence building construction projects. Questionnaire design was based on qualitative data analysis. The quantitative approach was used to collect data from building construction projects in Pakistan through via questionnaires. The 150 questionnaires links were sent to Pakistan building construction companies in Google form, and 120 respondents filled out the questionnaire. In this way, the response rate is 80%, enough to get accurate results. The SPSS software was used for analysis of collective data. The important quality factors were resulted from a stepwise RFI, RSI, IRII on the quality factors resulted from the factor analysis approach. The correlation coefficient was used to find the relationship between consultants and contractors with the owner. On the basis of analysis, it is concluded that the most significant factors influencing the quality of a building construction project were identified. the Findings of this study were:  the skill and interest of labor during construction are a significant impact on the quality in Pakistan, escalation of material prices had influenced the quality of construction projects, making decisions based on price rather than the value of work, Lack of implementation of quality standards of work has greatly influenced the quality of construction industry projects, lack of comprehensive and accurate bill of quantities (BOQ), excessive design changes during construction and shortage of resource materials. In Pakistan, all the stakeholders should consider and take action for these influencing quality factors before starting construction projects.

The Judicialisation of Parliamentary Privilege in Canada: A Cautionary Tale

Over the past few decades, Canadian courts have exerted strong influence over the meaning and operation of parliamentary privileges. Starting with a television producer’s Charter rights claim to access a provincial legislature’s public gallery and followed by an employment law claim made by the chauffeur to the Speaker of the House of Commons, the Supreme Court of Canada has articulated an approach under which judges closely scrutinise privileges invoked by legislatures when defending themselves against litigated claims. By applying the doctrine of necessity, Canadian courts make authoritative rulings on what counts as a valid legislative function and the processes and activities needed to fulfil those functions. Canadian courts also require the scope of parliamentary privileges to be pleaded in narrow terms that correspond to the details of a plaintiff’s claim, which has resulted in a hollowed-out conception of privilege over time. In scrutinising the necessity and scope of privilege, Canadian courts have chipped away at the separation of powers. Further, the Canadian approach unjustifiably prioritises the judicial vindication of private rights over the institutional needs of the legislature. Courts in other jurisdictions should reject the Canadian approach and avoid scrutinising the propriety of the exercise of privilege through a necessity test. Instead, courts should engage in a more limited jurisdictional test to confirm the availability of a relevant category of parliamentary privilege in law or historical practice. Judicialising parliamentary privileges weakens the autonomy and vitality of legislative institutions, with the Canadian approach serving as a cautionary tale. Ultimately, the legislature is accountable to the electorate for the exercise of its privileges. To promote fairness and reduce the risk of court interference, parliaments should strengthen the accountability and transparency associated with the exercise of their privileges, including by developing guidelines for their appropriate use.

Exploring host and home country effects on industrial relations in Chinese multinational enterprises – Evidence from Ireland

This paper explores the industrial relations (IR) experiences of Chinese multinational enterprises (MNE) in Ireland, with particular focus on the impact of host and home country institutions on IR policies and practices. The study adopted a qualitative methodology of semi-structured interviews with managerial respondents from eight Chinese MNEs located in Ireland and personnel in other relevant public and private organisations. Our results indicate that host country IR institutions (e.g. trade unions, employment legislation and government support) largely explain the IR practices of Chinese MNEs in Ireland. This study also identifies home country effects mostly relating to a hierarchical managerial approach and the development of a culture of harmony and collaboration. Finally, our results also call attention to some emerging ‘convergence’ and ‘divergence’ between Chinese MNEs and other MNEs in Ireland in terms of their IR experiences and responses.

On the Interplay Between Duration of Employment, Relational Quality and Wages—Results About Non-Family Farm Workers in Switzerland

Our knowledge on non-family farm workers has been hampered by a lack of reliable and relevant data. This study tackled this problem by asking Swiss managers of fruit, wine and vegetable farms about their employees. Using a dataset of 921 employees, we explain the duration of the labour contract, the level of wages and the relational quality between employers and workers. The level of wages and other resources like shelter are linked to employment duration but also to social factors like joint social events or the perception of relational quality by employers. Workers with the liberty to allocate their labour time have better relationships with their employers. The best wages are paid to full-time male employees with agricultural education residing in Switzerland. The fact that Swiss citizens receive a significant reduction in their payment compared to foreigners may point to a grey zone between unpaid family labour and market-based employment relations.

Discovering the Contributions of Academic Wives to the Development of Labour Law: Liesel Kahn-Freund

Abstract This article’s starting point is a strand of historical and sociological studies literature on ‘academic wives’ which reveals the social and, above all, unpaid labour that facilitated an academic career up until the mid-twentieth century. The article then draws on primary and secondary sources in order to trace the life of Otto Kahn-Freund’s wife, Elisabeth (Liesel) Kahn-Freund. We suggest that Liesel was an indispensable facilitator of her husband’s career. She provided valuable scholarly and intellectual support; by taking on responsibility for domestic tasks and care responsibilities, she gave her husband uninterrupted time and space to build his network, travel internationally, and, perhaps most importantly, concentrate on and pursue his research. In doing so, she, and many like her, played a significant albeit largely unrecognised role in the creation of labour law as we now know it. A better understanding of the labour performed by an “academic wife” provides a more nuanced picture of where labour law has come from and the factors that went into its creation. It also encourages labour law scholars to re-evaluate what kind of labour is recognised as part of labour law and is the focus of future labour law scholarship.

Consumers preferences and social sustainability: a discrete choice experiment on ‘Quality Agricultural Work’ ethical label in the Italian fruit sector

The Italian legislator has adopted several instruments to discourage undeclared work and exploitative labour in agriculture, mostly of a penal-repressive nature. Among the direct and indirect policy measures, the ‘Quality Agricultural Work Network’ represents an interesting approach to producing a ‘whitelist’ of farmers compliant with labour regulations. A law proposal intends to establish the ‘Quality Agricultural Work’ (QAW) ethical label to incentivise farmers to join the network, to which a limited percentage of farms have signed up. This study aims to investigate consumer preferences for the QAW label in the Italian fruit sector. We conducted a choice experiment on a sample of 324 consumers. Willingness to pay for ethical labels was estimated before and after information treatment was administered to evaluate the prospective effects of promotional and information campaigns. The information treatment conveyed a clear and concise message about the QAW project and its ethical label. The results show that consumers would pay a high price premium for fruit produced under fair working conditions, indicating that there may be a market space for the QAW label. Moreover, consumers perceive environmental and social sustainability claims as complementary contexts where both dimensions of sustainability are relevant.Graphical abstract

The Right to Work in International and National Law in the Time of Globalization

Work is not a commodity like all other commodities, but it is an emanation of the human person. For this reason, its value is higher than all other things. With the beginning of industrialization, in addition to state measures for the protection and education of work, the workers joining forces in mutual unions have done everything to oppose the inferiority of the labor factor to capital. It should be emphasized that the right to work is not a subjective right that you can claim in court in case of non-realization, but it is a principle that the State through policies must be committed to create conditions for everyone to be employed. In the time of economic and financial globalization that today's society is experiencing, the right to work is not regulated only in national legislation, but also in international legislation and collective contracts. In this work, the sources of international labor law approved by the ILO, the UN and some regional organizations such as the Council of Europe and the European Union will be explained first. It is very important to know the international sources for labor law because they occupy a privileged position in the hierarchy of sources of law in the Republic of Albania, which are often overlooked by law enforcement officers. After exhausting the sources of international labor law, the national sources will be treated with a focus on our Constitution. A special place in this work will be occupied by trade union freedom and the right to strike according to domestic law, which have historically represented the basic means to protect the rights of women workers. At the end of the report in this conference, we will briefly dwell on the impact of globalization on labor law.   Received: 25 December 2023 / Accepted: 25 February 2024 / Published: 23 April 2024

Effects of Globalization on Labor Standards and Working Conditions

The effects of globalization on labor standards and working conditions have been widely debated, with some arguing that globalization has improved labor standards and working conditions while others claim it has led to a deterioration of such standards. This paper aims to explore the effects of globalization on labor standards and working conditions. The study will examine the impact of globalization on the labor market, focusing on changes in labor laws and regulations, worker rights, and wages. The research will also investigate the impact of globalization on working conditions, including workplace safety and health, and the quality of jobs. Furthermore, the study will explore the role of multinational corporations in shaping labor standards and working conditions in different countries. The findings of this research will provide insights into the impact of globalization on labor standards and working conditions and will contribute to the ongoing debate on the implications of globalization for the labor market.
 Dhaka University Law Journal, 2023, 34 (2), 133-151

Idee prawa pracy jako poddyscyplina nauki prawa pracy (zarys badawczy)

The process of researching labor law should be dynamic. This is conditioned by the fact that labor law, unlike many other branches of law, is a typical “law of life.”This is because it regulates a particular form of social relations, which are labor relations. Consequently, it requires the exploration of new scientific perspectives. One such research space is the realm of legal ideas, specifically those related exclusively to the domains of labor and the study of labor law. This work aims to offer a fresh perspective, constructively invigorating the research process in labor law and introducing a new cognitive quality. It also serves as a call to researchers in the field of labor law, emphasizing the need to engage in discussions on topics worthy of scholarly exploration.