The Employment & Labor Law Group partners with clients to prevent or resolve employment disputes, whenever feasible, through employment-related compliance counseling and training. Gibbons training includes both group sessions and individual coaching. Every year, more and more laws are passed that affect employers and protect employees, creating an endless stream of requirements for employers, as well as employment-related claims and litigation. In addition to broad preventive employment services, Gibbons attorneys conduct workplace audits to assist clients with identifying compliance vulnerabilities and developing strategies to address them. The Gibbons attorneys who counsel and train clients and conduct audits on employment and labor law compliance are not only knowledgeable about the full range of state and federal laws and regulations, but they have actual experience litigating cases that interpret these laws, which results in advice that is both relevant and practical.
Areas of Focus
Employment Law Compliance and Counseling
Group attorneys counsel employers with regard to rights and obligations under the many statutes and regulations that govern the employer/employee relationship. We consult with clients regarding terminations, discipline, and general performance issues. The Group conducts investigations of employee misconduct, including allegations of harassment, discrimination, dishonesty, and substance abuse. We also advise on compliance with leave-of-absence and disability laws, such as federal and state family and medical leave acts and other antidiscrimination laws, including the Family and Medical Leave Act, Americans with Disabilities Act, and Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA). Gibbons provides advice on employment issues affecting such corporate transactions as mergers and acquisitions and guides clients through reductions in force, workforce restructurings, and plant closings, including WARN Act compliance. Firm attorneys draft employment-related policies and handbooks and employment and severance agreements.
Employment Practices Training: The Gibbons Workplace Training Academy
Training educates managers about their responsibilities and liabilities under the various laws and about ways to avoid and address improper workplace behavior and activities, while still effectively managing employee performance. In a number of situations, courts allow employers to raise as an affirmative defense the fact that they attempted to prevent unlawful conduct by training their employees. Training can, therefore, help companies prevent employment-related claims and can act as a shield in the event litigation does occur. As all companies with employees are vulnerable to lawsuits, all companies should train their employees. We launched the Gibbons Workplace Training Academy to do just that.
Gibbons Workplace Training Academy sessions, which Gibbons attorneys tailor to meet individual companies’ particular policies, practices, and needs, including industry-specific sessions, are offered in either instructor-led or train-the-trainer formats and are also available via webinar. Popular training programs include:
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- Preventing Workplace Harassment and Discrimination
- Investigating Workplace Harassment and Discrimination Complaints
- Employment Law Basics
- Compliance with Family, Medical, and Disability-Related Laws
- Wage and Hour and Pay Equity Laws
- Union Avoidance
- The NLRB and Non-Union Workplaces
- Electronic Information and Employee Privacy
- Title IX Compliance