[giveita]

If you hire someone in say Australia you would be subject to its fair work act, and its courts. You'd need to sus out the tax situation too.

What if they are a contractor? Well usually the law treats these things like ducks and asks if they quack. If it quacks like employment it is subject to that law.

[vrmiguel]

I find that Employers of Record (EoR) make this a non-issue.

I work for an American startup, remotely from S. America. I'm hired according to the (extensive, and expensive) local labor laws, while my startup likely knows absolutely nothing about the intricacies of how my countries' labor laws work, the EoR just handles everything and sends the employer a bill every month.