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New amendments to the Employees Relations Act have been enacted and will come into affect on 1 April 2011.

• Every employer will be required to keep a copy of every signed employment agreement from 1 July 2011.  Failure to produce a copy of the agreement can result in a fine being imposed.
• A 90-day trial period is introduced for new employees.  During these 90 days, the employer may dismiss the employees without them having a right to a grievance complaint, but only if all legislative requirements have been followed precisely.
• The Employment Relations Authority will apply a new test in determining whether the dismissal of an employee was justified.  The test is what a ‘fair and reasonable employer could have done in all the circumstances’, thus widening the factors that may be taken into account.