Services We Provide

COMPLYING WITH LOCAL, STATE AND FEDERAL EMPLOYMENT LAWS AND REGULATIONS

• Advising on compliance with multistate and federal employment laws and regulations relating to discrimination, harassment and retaliation, including the Equal Pay Act of 1963, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA).
• Counseling on attendance, accommodation and leave issues, including development and application of policies on the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), state leave laws and their inter-relationship with workers’ compensation laws.
• Guiding on  Department of Labor  regulations, immigration rules, overtime issues and complying with state wage and hour laws, in addition to the federal Fair Labor Standards Act of 1974 (FLSA).
• Developing and implementing federally-mandated policies, including Affirmative Action and Equal Employment Opportunity.

DRAFTING EMPLOYMENT-RELATED CONTRACTS AND ADVISING ON TRANSACTIONS

• Negotiating and drafting of employment agreements, including executive employment agreements, non-compete, confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements.
• Drafting separation and severance agreements.
• Counseling on reductions in force (RIF), including analysis of RIF plans and candidates for reduction, to minimize potential liability under plant closing and anti-discrimination statutes. Preparing plans to operationalize RIFs and properly communicate to departing and remaining employees.
• Representing  parties involved in mergers and acquisitions, including conducting human resources and employment law reviews of the prospective seller, and advising sellers on avoidance of post-closing liabilities.

PREPARING EMPLOYEE HANDBOOKS AND PROVIDING HR COUNSELING AND SUPPORT

• Preparing contemporary HR policies, programs and employee handbooks which are clear and comprehensive, accurately convey the employer’s message to its staff, and comply with all applicable  federal and state laws and regulations.
• Conducting comprehensive HR reviews, including auditing of employer’s policies, practices and processes to ensure business effectiveness, consistency with organizational goals, determining legal compliance and reducing potential liabilities.
• Counseling  HR professionals and line management on litigation avoidance, including handling performance, disciplinary action, hiring and firing (we script terminations), unemployment insurance, medical/disability, workplace safety, violence prevention and record retention issues.
• Developing programs and policies that protect business assets and facilitate a professional workplace, including those involving pre-employment background screening, drug testing, references, employee monitoring and property searches, and electronic communications systems, such as e-mail and voicemail.
• Designing and administering corporate compliance programs, including preparation of business codes of conduct.
• Assisting with, or directly handling, sensitive terminations, including discharges of senior or executive level employees and plant closings.
• Responding to inquiries from third parties, including government agencies or plaintiff attorneys.

DELIVERING TRAINING SESSIONS ON A VARIETY OF HR AND LEGAL TOPICS

• Training (on a custom designed-basis) supervisors, managers, and employees (one-on-one or in a group setting) on a range of contemporary HR and legal topics.
• Including such examples as: respect in the workplace (avoiding harassment), management development and supervisory skills, equal employment and diversity issues, corporate compliance and business ethics, violence in the workplace, how to conduct employee investigations, coaching and counseling problem employees, and performance appraisal management.

ADVISING ON LABOR RELATIONS AND UNION AVOIDANCE

• Providing management with strategies to remain union-free and to decertify labor unions.
• Handling collective bargaining negotiations for unionized employers.
• Counseling management on maximizing employer rights during labor disputes.

DEFENDING ORGANIZATIONS IN LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT LITIGATION

• Representing management in proceedings before federal, state and local courts and agencies.
• Including a wide variety of labor and employment law issues, such as discrimination, harassment, wrongful discharge, retaliation and wages and hours.

PERFORMING WORKPLACE INVESTIGATIONS

• Advising on workplace discrimination and/or harassment issues, including independently investigating internal complaints on behalf of clients.
• Assessing credibility of witnesses, reaching conclusions of fact and preparing recommendations for ameliorative actions.
• Counseling clients who choose to investigate allegations internally.