Covid-19 management
Lawyer’s response on Singapore’s legal FAQs – salaries, layoffs, and retention
Be it unpaid leave, layoffs, or wage-saving measures, ensure your every business decision is aligned with the legalities in Singapore.
DATE
18 May 2020
TIME
10 – 11.10am
(GMT+8)
DURATION
70 mins
Webinar details:
Singapore government’s Solidarity Budget, and the subsequent boost of S$3.8 billion following the extended Circuit Breaker announcement, is a potential game-changer for the corporate world. But what are you, as employers and employees, entitled to? How can you ensure compliance with the strict requirements of the relief measures, especially when it comes to salaries? Retrenchment is being considered by some companies but what about retention options?
In the latest in Human Resources Online’s webinar series, we draw on the expertise of a panel of lawyers to share the hard-hitting legal obligations of employers during the Circuit Breaker period and the realities of business survival in the toughest of times. This live session also includes a real-time, dedicated Q&A session for participants to get questions answered. We will also provide an ‘upvote’ option to help the speaker identify and prioritise answering the most popular questions.
Some of the key discussion points:
Your entitlements from Singapore’s Resilience and Solidarity budgets
What are some of the legal obligations that you must continue to adhere to when making employees redundant?
How can you undertake retrenchments as humanely as possible?
What are some best practices for employee retention amidst a recessionary environment?
Treating your employees fairly and responsibly: Can you put employees on unpaid leave during this time? What wage-saving measures are you allowed?
After the session, you will be equipped with knowledge on managing salaries and costs, layoffs, and retention strategies for tough times!
Know what you are entitled to as part of the Resilience and Solidarity budgets and apply for the relief grants and support measures right away.
How can you ensure compliance with the strict requirements of the relief measures, especially when it comes to salaries and wage-support schemes?
Tools to design retention plans for your employees instead of resorting to layoffs.
Speaker details:
Amarjit Kaur, Partner, Withersworldwide
Amarjit is a partner in Withers KhattarWong’s dispute resolution team. She is a commercial disputes lawyer who has acted in high-value and complex litigation and international arbitration matters.
She has represented Fortune 500 companies and ultra high-net-worth individuals in shareholder, employment, corporate insolvency, and large scale professional negligence / construction disputes. Amarjit advises clients on contentious and non-contentious employment issues. She has guided companies and executives through complex employment issues arising out of investigations, reduction in force exercises, business transfers and M&As. Amarjit is a frontrunner in training and performing cultural assessments on #MeToo and diversity & inclusion issues.
In 2017, Amarjit was recognised by the Singapore Business Review as one of Singapore’s most influential lawyers aged 40 and under. She sits on the Project Law Help Committee under the auspices of the Law Society’s Pro Bono Services and is a strong proponent of pro bono work.
Speaker details:
Jeremiah Huang, Partner, Corporate and Capital Markets Practice, RHTLaw Asia LLP
Jeremiah is a Partner with RHTLaw Asia where he counsels clients on corporate matters such as public/private fundraising, governance, compliance and mergers and acquisitions. Most recently, Jeremiah was recognised by the Singapore Business Review as one of Singapore’s most influential lawyers aged 40 and under for 2019, and in The Legal 500 Asia Pacific 2020 Edition as a Next-Generation Partner.
Jeremiah is also the legal advisor to Singapore’s Association of Listed Companies, and Australian Alumni Singapore, which is the national umbrella organisation for the 200,000 Singaporean or Singapore-based graduates of Australian universities. Jeremiah also serves on the Law Society of Singapore’s Corporate Practice Committee and International Relations Committee.
Speaker details:
Muntaz Zainuddin, Partner, I.R.B. Law
Muntaz is a Partner in I.R.B. Law and oversees the work of associates and helps to manage the firm.
Muntaz’s work experience includes working in Government legal departments of the Ministry of Manpower and Central Provident Fund Board, making her remarkably familiar with Employment and Regulatory Matters. She has given many advices to employees and employers (including MNCs) on employment related matters. This includes advising them on reorganization / retrenchment processes and benefits, as well as, providing advice on settlement agreements, non-compete clauses and taxation matters.
Muntaz’s practice over the years also involves Criminal and Family matters and she has represented clients successfully in many protracted matters in the Supreme, State and Family Courts. This includes defending employers and/or employees facing prosecution in Court for employment-related offences.
Muntaz is an Accredited Mediator with SMC and SIMI. She is also a Member of a larger international community of mediators (MiKK) that is involved in cross-border work. She is appointed and/or a member of many practice groups within the Law Society and Singapore Academy of Law.
Speaker details:
Julia Yeo, Partner, Employment & Immigration,Asia,
Squire Patton Boggs Singapore LLP
Julia Yeo is a regional hub partner at Squire Patton Boggs, heading up their Asia Pacific L&E teams. She has extensive experience advising multinationals on complex regional employment issues, aligning regional practices with global strategies and compliance with diverse labour laws in the region.
Julia is passionate about all aspects of employment practice and enjoys training HR teams to raise the level of HR engagement. Clients described her as “confident in her advice”, “able to ask the right questions…” (Legal 500 Asia Pacific) and “very thorough and an expert in the field of employment law” (Chambers Asia Pacific).