To make it easy for businesses with staff based overseas to comply with local employment law and regulations, XpertHR provides a comprehensive series of international guides and resources.
A recent survey from logistics firm, One World Express[i] suggested that 57% of businesses are looking for new opportunities outside the UK post Covid-19.
Last year the Institute of Directors[ii] also highlighted that nearly a third of their members could move their operations abroad due to Brexit, with 16% already having relocation plans and a further 13% actively considering a move.
XpertHR International helps employers with staff based outside the UK keep up to date with their obligations and provides guidance and key information at a national level across the entire employment lifecycle, from recruitment to the termination of employment. This includes a guide for global employers covering the main issues facing employers with staff in different countries, and individual country guides providing employment law guidance covering 45 countries - from the Americas to Europe, Asia down to Australia, so businesses can operate as effectively in China as they do in Venezuela.
XpertHR’s International country guides are written by local legal experts based in those countries and they are regularly updated so businesses can see at a glance what’s been happening in relation to a country. This information is also included in topic alert emails sent to subscribers and published on the international tool home page and international topic pages.
Another benefit is the guides each contain a brief summary of significant forthcoming employment law developments – something that HR professionals say is often one of their main challenges to keep on top of. (Links to relevant government and official agency websites are also included, which companies also value as they know these will be trusted and official sites).
Areas where businesses often need guidance include global maternity and paternity leave rights as these vary considerably. For example, in Saudi Arabia maternity leave is 10 weeks, whilst in Bulgaria it is over a year, at 410 calendar days.
Countries can have unusual laws too. For instance, in Russia, Hungary and Bulgaria employees are entitled to time off to donate blood; in Spain employees are entitled to 15 calendar days’ paid leave for their marriage and one day for moving house, and in Chile companies are obliged to distribute a share of their profits to employees.
Jeya Thiruchelvam, XpertHR’s managing editor, employment law says, “Working with teams around the world has become the norm for the 21st century, and many HR professionals now manage day-to-day people issues in their organisation's overseas operations. XpertHR International helps firms to anticipate the challenges of working in new territories and access tools needed to create a strategy for international assignments and global expansion.
“Our guides offer comprehensive information on the most important employment laws, including government measures in relation to coronavirus, to ensure companies are compliant. They also help businesses ask the right questions when it comes to talking to local lawyers. For any business looking to operate overseas they are essential reading.”
XpertHR have also developed a ‘HR checklist for expanding into another country’ covering key elements organisations should consider. This includes considerations around assigning an employee abroad, such as how will foreign payroll and benefits be handled, and what visas or work permits will be required. There are also specific considerations depending on if the expansion involves starting, and staffing, a company from scratch or it is an expansion through acquisition.
For more information and to access to XpertHR International guides and tools click here.
For more information on XpertHR visit: www.xperthr.co.uk