New COVID-19 social distancing rules commenced on 29 April 2021. For catering businesses (excluding bars and pubs which have their own rules), there are now four modes of operation under which they can operate dine-in services.

Many countries have started to roll out vaccines against COVID-19. While a vaccination program is viewed by many as the long-awaited route out of the pandemic, this presents challenges for employers—including whether they can require employees to be vaccinated. In this publication, we provide at-a-glance guidance to the key issues for employers to consider in Brazil, France, Germany, Hong Kong, the UK and the United States, followed by more detailed Q&As for each of these jurisdictions.

Effective March 12, 2021, until December 31, 2022, employees in New York State are eligible for a paid leave of absence for a sufficient period of time, not to exceed four hours per injection, to be vaccinated for COVID-19.

The Hong Kong Government has recently announced a “new direction” in relation to managing the COVID pandemic. The heart of such new direction will involve “vaccine bubbles”, which will allow a relaxation of current social gathering restrictions in circumstances where all participants have received at least the first dose of a COVID vaccine.

It is an implied term in every employment contract that an employee is obliged to comply with a lawful and reasonable order from their employer. A failure by an employee to comply with a lawful and reasonable order which is within the scope of the employee’s employment will be a serious breach of contract.
So, is a direction by a Hong Kong employer that all employees must be vaccinated against COVID-19 a “lawful and reasonable direction”?

Every employer in Hong Kong should consider how the vaccination programme could impact its business and which questions it may face from employees and customers.

Companies face a new set of challenges as countries implement their COVID-19 vaccination plans. Covering several major jurisdictions, this Legal Update summarizes key vaccine information for employers, such as the availability of vaccines, the rights of employers to require vaccination or proof thereof and measures that could be taken against employees refusing to be vaccinated.