US President’s Covid-19 vaccination order rejected by appeals court.
Closed borders and resultant skills shortages prompts Australian companies to offer sign-up bonuses – some for the first time in 15 years, while labour statistics show that American workers are quick to quit their jobs for higher paying roles. Meanwhile, the Philippines introduces new Covid-safety rules for in-office employees and a US appeals court ruling highlights the need to account for differences in workplaces – and workers – when considering mandatory vaccination.
American workers look for higher pay
Americans quit their jobs at a record pace for the second straight month in September, in many cases for more money elsewhere as companies bump up pay to fill job openings that are close to an all-time high, reports AP.
According to the Labour Department, 4.4 million people quit their jobs in September, or about three percent of the workforce. That’s up from 4.3 million in August and far above the pre-pandemic level of 3.6 million.
The data points to a historic level of turmoil in the job market as newly-empowered workers quit jobs to take higher pay.
Philippines requires in-office workers to vaccinate
People working in offices in the Philippines will have to get vaccinated against Covid-19 or get tested frequently, at their own expense.
The new rules for in-office employees will take effect from 1 December, reports Reuters.
Public transportation services will be required to have their employees fully inoculated as a condition to continue their operations, according to a statement.
A little over a quarter of the Philippines’ 110 million population has been fully vaccinated and the country is battling one of Asia’s worst outbreaks.
Australian companies offer sign-up bonuses
As closed borders intensify a skills shortage, demand for Australian M&A lawyers is so high that firms are offering sign-on bonuses for the first time in 15 years and have nearly doubled recruiting fees, Reuters reports.
Firms are also reviewing salaries twice a year and have raised base pay by up to 15 percent as they try to avoid losing workers amid record-high demand for the industry’s services, people in the hiring process said.
The sharp increase in demand for some services cover M&A law, data analytics and hospitality.
US appeals court rejects ‘one-size-fits-all’ vaccine order
A US appeals court has upheld its decision to put on hold an order by President Joe Biden for companies with 100 workers or more to require Covid-19 vaccines, rejecting a challenge by his administration that halting implementation of the vaccine mandate could lead to dozens or even hundreds of deaths.
“The mandate is a one-size-fits-all sledgehammer that makes hardly any attempt to account for differences in workplaces (and workers),” Circuit Court Judge Kurt Engelhardt wrote for the panel.
Vaccine mandates are deeply controversial in the United States. Supporters say they are a must to put an end to the nearly two-year coronavirus pandemic, while opponents argue they violate the US Constitution and curb individual liberty, according to a Reuters report.
