Workforce Policy Update: India’s 8th Pay Commission revised consultant recruitment rules, cutting the Young Professional experience requirement from 4 to 2 years and expanding spots to 16, while keeping Senior Consultants at 10+ years (2 roles) and Consultants at 6+ years (5 roles). Employee Well-Being & Work Design: Dubai’s DGHR rolled out three initiatives—an Employee Wellbeing Index, a Financial Wellbeing Initiative, and enhanced Flexible Work Systems—aimed at improving retention and productivity across the public sector. Talent Pipeline for Youth: UAE Islamic bank DIB launched its first Youth Council to give young employees a direct channel to senior leadership and a structured way to shape customer experience, engagement, and innovation. Labor & Safety: France firefighters staged a strike over long-running shortages of material, finance, and people, demanding more state funding, modern equipment, and better health protection. Compliance & Oversight: Canada’s border agency oversight gap persists as a 2024 law creating an independent complaints commission has not been implemented, leaving whistle-blowers without a dedicated review body. Education Dropout Alarm: An Indian parliamentary panel flagged a steep decline in schools and students at higher levels, with nearly 73% dropping out before finishing higher secondary. Hiring & HR Tech: Gusto is using AI “archetypes” in performance reviews to standardize coaching on AI fluency, after earlier backlash to AI tracking.