In this first Human Resource Watch column of 2020, Tilleke & Gibbins’ labor and employment lawyers take a look back at three of the most common issues that our clients have asked us about over the past year, including some of the most significant recent legal developments and applications that employers in Thailand have been facing.Thailand’s Personal Data Protection Act

On December 13, 2019, the Vietnamese government issued Decree No. 94/2019/ND-CP (Decree 94) providing detailed guidance on some articles of the Law on Crop Production related to plant varieties and cultivation. Decree 94 will come into effect on February 1, 2020.Notably, Decree 94 includes a list of plant variety genetic resources banned from export. In addition, it provides detailed regulations on labeling, conditions for trading or manufacturing, and administrative procedures related to plant varieties to facilitate the manufacture, trade or import of plant varieties.

Vietnam’s new Cybersecurity Law was promulgated on June 12, 2018 and came into effect on January 1, 2019, with a majority of its provisions enforceable from the effective date. However, there are still certain provisions of the law which need to be further guided by implementing regulations and guidelines. There are currently draft guidelines under consideration, including:

Ever-increasing internet penetration and the proliferation of constant connectivity have sparked new intellectual property protection concerns in recent years. With the e-commerce market in Southeast Asia projected to reach USD 102 billion by 2025, online infringement threatens to dampen this economic surge, and rights holder must rise to meet these new challenges in addition to their conventional methods of combatting infringement.

On December 6, 2019, the Notification Regarding the Guidelines for the Consideration of Unfair Trade Practices in Franchise Businesses was issued to prevent franchisors from adopting overly restrictive and unfair contractual conditions that are deemed to potentially cause damage to franchisees. The notification will become effective on February 4, 2020.

If an employer collects employees’ personal information, the employer must comply with the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA).Thailand’s PDPA, which was enacted earlier this year, contains significant new requirements for employers that collect employees’ (called “data subjects” in the PDPA) personal information. Most sections of the PDPA will become effective on May 27, 2020, so employers should be aware of their duties and liabilities.Important PDPA requirements that relate to employers include the following:

For several years, Myanmar has been engaged in significant ongoing social, economic, and legal reforms through new legislation and regulations. As part of this, Myanmar’s employment regulatory framework has been updated, including changes to the rules on overtime, working hours, and the calculation of leave.