Insights: Employment | Benefits | Mobility – Q1 2024

Welcome to Insights, our regular publication highlighting key employment, benefits and mobility developments.

In the last edition of Insights, we highlighted what was on the horizon for businesses, including new laws, regulations and standards. With 2024 well underway, this edition digs a little deeper into some of the challenges and opportunities facing businesses this year.

We examine a range of topical issues: affirmative action in nine jurisdictions, navigating AI in the workplace and recruitment, the new equal pay law in Brazil, the rise of lifetime income products in CITs in the United States, the abolition of the lifetime allowance in the United Kingdom and updates on the H-1B visa lottery in the United States. We also highlight key recent global employment, benefits and mobility updates, in case you missed them.

We are delighted to share this edition of Insights with you and hope you find it helpful. If you have any questions, please contact any member of the global Employment & Benefits team.

Affirmative action is a hot topic for businesses. Since the 2023 US Supreme Court decision in Students for Fair Admission v. Harvard University and University of North Carolina, which held that attempts to increase diversity in universities by taking race into account in admissions decisions were not permissible, employers in the United States and beyond have been reviewing their diversity programs.

Artificial intelligence (AI), unsurprisingly, remains a high priority across the board. It is an increasingly common feature of the workplace, as employers consider how best to deploy AI to support decision-making, often during recruitment processes. Given the rapid developments in AI, however, this is a challenging area for employers to navigate.

A new equal pay law has come into force in Brazil, introducing new obligations for certain employers. With the first disclosure of the “Salary and Remuneration Criteria Transparency Report” in March, this is a critical issue for employers with operations in Brazil. Aline Fidelis, Partner, provides an overview of the new law.

The market has responded over the years to the shift from defined benefit plans to 401(k) plans by developing a variety of products, including those offering “lifetime income.” Additional agency guidance on these increasingly sophisticated products would be helpful for plan sponsors and asset managers.

On 6 April 2024, the lifetime allowance will be abolished, and a new regime for the taxation of lump sums and lump sum death benefits will be introduced. This is the most significant change to the UK pensions tax regime for nearly two decades, and has implications for both UK companies and multinational companies with UK operations.

The registration period for the annual H-1B visa lottery is now open, enabling US employers to secure work authorization for new employees. New policies and procedures apply this year to this coveted visa category, requiring employers to incorporate process changes into their H-1B strategy.

Highlighting topical workplace issues across multiple jurisdictions