8:30 - 9:00: Registration and welcome coffee

9:00 - 9:15: Welcome from International Employment Lawyer

9:15 - 9:30: Opening remarks: Singapore as a global hub

Zaqy Mohamad, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Manpower, Singapore will provide an overview of key employment trends in Singapore and how the international business hub can impact and is also affected by prevailing global trends.

9:30 - 10:45: Plenary Session: Regional labour law outlook

Reflecting on a period of unprecedented change in the very nature and definition of work, a panel of top government officials, industry leaders, and legal experts will consider the key national labour reforms taking place in Singapore and across Asia-Pacific, and how international trends and local politics may affect various industries crucial to economies across the region.

Moderator:

Jonathan Yuen, Partner, Head of Employment (Contentious), Rajah & Tann (Singapore)

Panellists:

Alvin Koh, Chief Legal Officer, Ministry of Manpower (Singapore)
Richard Lam, Director - Employment Legal, APAC, Netflix (Singapore)
Patrick Tay, Director, Legal and Strategy & Assistant Secretary-General, National Trades Union Congress (Singapore)

10:45 - 11:15: Coffee break

11:15 - 12:30: Breakout Session 1: Working in covid’s shadow

Three years after the emergence of covid-19, labour markets across Asia have finally begun to recover from the pandemic. As covid restrictions subside, employers are faced with a choice: embrace flexible working as the future of work, or demand staff return to the office. A panel of experts will explore the risks and rewards of both options and provide best practice advice on overcoming employee-related challenges, including remote-worker monitoring, data protection, and wellbeing concerns.

Moderator:

Joydeep Hor, Founding Partner, People + Culture Strategies (Australia)

Panellists:

Maria Crabb, Director, Employment Counsel - JAPAC, Palo Alto Networks (Singapore)
Pooja Ramchandani, Partner, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co (India)
Pimvimol (June) Vipamaneerut, Partner, Tilleke & Gibbins (Thailand)

11:15 - 12:30: Breakout Session 2: The robot workforce

Spurred on by the covid-pandemic, the implementation of AI into our everyday working lives continues at pace. With Asia-Pacific the fastest growing AI market in the world, several local governments have begun introducing various measures to regulate the development and application of this new technology. From productivity improvements to discrimination concerns, a panel of experts will consider the potential benefits and drawbacks of greater automation and machine learning in the workplace.

Moderator:

Keith E. Sonderling, Commissioner, US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (United States)

Panellists:

Parvinder Kashmirian, Director, Employment Legal, Uber (Singapore)
Vikram Shroff, Partner, Nishith Desai Associates (India)
Zee Kin Yeong, Chief Executive, Singapore Academy of Law (Singapore)

12:30 - 2:00: Networking Lunch

2:00 - 3:15: Breakout Session 3: Modern thinking on D&I

A cultural melting pot of hundreds of ethnicities, languages, and dialects, conflict can occur within Asia-Pacific’s workplaces. Across geographical and cultural borders, how can employers create diverse and inclusive workforces and also ensure their workers are treated equally and equitably? From tackling the gender pay gap to integrating foreign talent into local workforces, a panel of experts will explore hot-button discrimination topics, and why multinationals should not rely on a one-size-fits-all approach to D&I across Asia – but instead provide tailored strategies to each jurisdiction.

Moderator:

Kathryn Weaver, Partner, Seyfarth Shaw (Hong Kong)

Panellists:

Preetha Soman, Partner, J Sagar Associates (India)
Jeannette Tam, Senior Counsel, Global Employment Law, ServiceNow (Singapore)
Liz Williamson, Director - Employment Law - APAC, Africa, Middle East, Accenture (United Arab Emirates)
Nancy Zhang, Of Counsel, Littler (Singapore)

2:00 - 3:15: Breakout Session 4: Tomorrow’s pay and benefits

To win the global war for talent, employers are under increasing pressure to offer benefits that meet their employees’ needs. But given the expansion of multigenerational workforces and rising benefit costs, this is far from straightforward. From being paid in cryptocurrency to designing customisable benefit plans, a panel of experts will consider the latest pay and workplace perk trends, including their impact on ESG goals.

Moderator:

Stephanie Chiu, Counsel, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (Hong Kong)

Panellists:

Avik Biswas, Partner, INDUSLAW (India)
Rashel Pomoy, Partner, Villaraza & Angangco (Philippines)
Ai Leen Tan, Assistant General Counsel, TE Connectivity (Singapore)

3:15 - 3:45: Coffee break

3:45 - 4:30: In conversation with Keith E. Sonderling, U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

With many countries worldwide looking to the West for inspiration on how to update their employment regulations, IEL sits down with Keith E. Sonderling, Commissioner at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, to discuss US discrimination trends and enforcement as the number of protected characteristics in the workplace continues to grow.

4:30 - 5:45: Plenary Session: Cross-border investigations

From fraud and modern slavery concerns to harassment and discrimination, in-house employment counsel worldwide are being kept busy with a host of multinational internal investigations. A panel of experts will consider the key investigation trends and highlight the challenges to completing an effective internal probe across multiple jurisdictions.

Moderator: 

Lesli Ligorner, Partner, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius (China)

Panellists:

Atul Gupta, Partner, Trilegal (India)
Johanna Johnson, Head of International Employment Law, Meta (Singapore)
Soojung Lee, Head of International Employment, Yulchon (Korea)
Akiko Yamakawa, Partner, Vanguard Lawyers Tokyo (Japan)
Teresa Young, Director & Senior Managing Legal Counsel – Head of APAC Employment Law, Boston Consulting Group (Singapore)

5:45 – Close and networking drinks reception