How to Search for Local Employment and Labor Law Updates
A Practical Guide for HR Managers and Business Leaders
For any business looking to expand globally, understanding and complying with local employment and labor laws is a must.
Each country or region has its own specific employment laws that set out detailed requirements on working hours, leave, compensation, employment termination, minimum wage and so on, and these requirements differ greatly from one jurisdiction to another. Breaching any of these employment laws may lead to severe legal consequences including lawsuits, penalties, and in serious cases, even criminal liability or imprisonment.
How do you know whether your search results are reliable?
This article will provide you with some practical tips on how to search for the latest local laws in case your company does not have a big budget to spend on legal advice from a lawyer.
Tip #1: Leverage Atlas’s Country Insights
An important resource that you can use as a starting point is Atlas’ country insights - an inventory of country manuals for over 160 countries that covers key employment-related information from employment contracts, working hours, annual leave, sick leave, compensation, to termination, severance, and more. Atlas’ Country Insights offers practical information and basic guidance that HR managers need to know before hiring an employee in a new country.
Tip #2: Use these Keywords in your Search
When you search for laws or want to ask a specific legal question - for example, what the severance payment rules in a certain country are - adding trusted sources in your keywords is a great way to improve the search results’ relevance and accuracy.
Here are 3 suggested keywords you may consider adding:
Labor Authority’s Website: Add the name of the labor department or labor authority’s name in your online search browser so that those pages will show up first. For example, instead of searching for “sick leave in Japan”, try searching for “sick leave in Japan, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare”.
In many jurisdictions, the local labor authority regularly publishes useful guidelines and FAQs to help employers navigate and understand local laws and their real-life applications, especially when there are legislative updates.
Be aware that the labor department or labor authority is named differently in each market and there could be more than one government body providing such services. For example, in Singapore the labor authority is called the Ministry of Manpower, while in Japan, it is called the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.
Add the name of the main employment law in that jurisdiction: Adding the name of the main employment act, law, or ordinance that you want to refer to can also help you to get good search results and find the answer quicker. For example, instead of searching for “sick leave in South Korea”, you could search for “sick leave in South Korea, Labor Standards Act”.
Add the name of legal databases, legal publications, or law firm names: Adding the name of legal databases, law firm names, or commentaries to your keyword search can help you find articles written by lawyers around the world, including updates about recent legislative changes and how lawyers interpret those provisions.
Jurisdiction | Name of the main labour law | Name of the labour authority/department |
|---|---|---|
Hong Kong | Employment Ordinance | Labour Department |
Singapore | The Employment Act | Ministry of Manpower (MOM) |
South Korea | Labor Standards Act | Ministry of Employment and Labor |
Tip #3: Use the Local Search Engine, Local Language, and Time Tool
Google may be the first search engine that you use whenever you have a legal question, but in some countries it’s not the primary search engine.
For example, Naver is predominant in South Korea, while Baidu is the equivalent of Google in China. Using the local search engine will help you get better results for legal questions. Even better, search in the local language if you or your teammates have those language skills.
You may also select the time of the search results to be in the past month or year in under the “tools” option in the search engine to make sure that your search results are the most recent, as legislation constantly changes and some of the search results that show up could be outdated and no longer applicable.
Tip #4: Call the Local Labour Department on an Anonymous Basis
If you encounter a tricky employment issue and cannot find the information on the internet, an alternative way is to find the local Labor Department number and call them on an anonymous basis during their work hours.
You may just call the department and ask on a hypothetical basis if a certain situation occurs, what you can or should do as an employer. This way, you will be able to get the guidance needed without revealing too much information.
*Disclaimer: Please note that Atlas’ Insights is for reference only and should not be used or relied on as legal advice and does not create a client relationship. Users should use any information with discretion and should always double check the latest legislative updates. If in doubt, please seek independent legal advice. Atlas accepts no responsibility for any loss or damage that might result from accessing or relying on the above contents.