Views from the bar: New Year, new laws

Kanisa George

A New Year, a new day, a new opportunity to get things right.

Over the next few weeks, we'll all find ourselves basking in the air of newness. No longer focusing on the ills of the past, most of us will adjust our thinking to focus on what's ahead, using every ounce of our being or self-improvement mantra to keep our spirits in check. After all, who doesn't desire a start-over?

Suffice it to say, the spirit of newness doesn't only affect individuals but also companies, organisations and, importantly, governments, who use the new year as an opportunity to implement change, shift focus and improve systems with citizens at its core.

Call it an automatic paradigm shift of sorts, but lawmakers often use the new year to enforce new measures and bring about legislative change. Perhaps this approach keeps in line with starting afresh, or maybe it's easier for citizens to adjust their mindset to something new, once it aligns with the start of a new year; but it is often the case that a handful of new laws take effect globally with the coming of a new year.

Interestingly, several of these legislative changes have human rights, equality and environmental protection at their core, signalling a march towards global development and evolution.

Of note is the salary transparency legislation that took effect on January 1, 2023 in a handful of US states and requires employers to disclose salary ranges — either in job postings, after an initial interview or if an applicant requests that information.

Salary transparency laws in California require employers with 15 or more workers to list salary ranges on job postings on a company's hiring page or third-party website like LinkedIn. In addition, these businesses must also provide the pay scale to an employee for the job they currently hold upon request.

According to an article in Forbes magazine, salary disclosure laws are intended to promote fairness concerning wage gaps between men and women and disparities rooted in race and ethnicity. This allows potential employees to have never before access to information such as wages and any possible pay gaps.

Laws are constantly in motion to meet the changing needs of the environment and tackle climate change.

Since around 2008, regulations governing clean air zones formed part of the United Kingdom's legal framework to reduce their carbon footprint and improve air quality. This strategy discourages using older, more polluting vehicles, often exceeding emissions standards and subjecting these vehicles to a daily fee when they enter the zone. In 2023, more cities across the UK, including Greater Manchester, Sheffield and Tyneside, will implement clean air zones to improve air quality.

In the United Arbs Emirates, several legislative changes regarded as barrier-breaking are being implemented in 2023.

From an overhaul of the family court system to changes in employment laws, albeit small, it is clear a societal shift that many considered impossible is taking effect. Federal law for non-Muslim expatriates, covering critical family matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance and child custody, has been reworked to grant equal rights to men and women.

Previously, non-Muslim couples living in the UAE had to comply with Sharia-based law on marriage, divorce, and children. One change to this system is the eradication of the consent requirement for non-Muslim couples concerning marriage. Instead, couples are now allowed to marry "based on the will of both the husband and wife" and are no longer required to obtain consent from the wife's father or guardian.

In the case of divorce, couples will now be able to request a divorce without having to prove one party was at fault and where children are involved, procedures will be put in place to resolve issues of child custody after a divorce.

Custody issues would now be determined by the court, based on what is in the child's best interest as opposed to the controversial position of a father's ability to immediately claim custody of his son at the age of 11 and his daughter when she turned 13.

Significant changes were also made to employment law which saw, as of the 1st of January 2023, the requirement for all public and private sector employees to subscribe to the country's social security programme. Used as a safety net for workers, this scheme will act as a form of insurance in case of a loss of employment, and employees would be categorised based on their earning capacity.

On the topic of earnings, more than a handful of world societies have committed to an increase in the minimum wage to reflect the rising cost of living.

Nearly half of all US states are increasing the minimum wage, and by April 2023, UK citizens would benefit from a 9.7 per cent increase in their national living wage.

In many ways, the new year is accompanied by positive changes that, unfortunately, aren't always maintained throughout the year. Like many of us dying to see social and economic growth in the coming year in our society, only time will tell whether the changes we want to see will actually take root.