Thelen LLP's Labor and Employment attorneys have experience in virtually all aspects of workplace law. Our Labor and Employment practice is known for the scope of its experience, excellence in client service, in-depth experience at litigation avoidance, and defense of complex class action lawsuits. Our attorneys are among the nation's leading practitioners. With nearly 60 professionals, the Labor and Employment practice is a destination for employers of all sizes throughout the United States and abroad, ranging from Fortune 100 corporations to emerging start-up companies.
Thelen Labor and Employment Attorneys have been recognized as among the best in the industry and have been counsel of record on major precedent-setting decisions. We have represented clients in a wide range of industries, including retail, financial services, banking and insurance, health care, engineering and construction, energy, electronic and print media, entertainment, restaurant and hospitality, transportation and logistics, manufacturing, technology, professional services, staffing, chemicals, as well as educational and cultural institutions. Our firm's multi-disciplinary capabilities and full-service approach are unrivaled.
Thelen's Labor and Employment attorneys provide clients strategic advice and counsel in the following areas:
Corporate Diversity Counseling and Risk Mitigation
Thelen's Corporate Diversity Counseling Team offers a wide range of diversity counseling and risk management services including advice and counsel on the design and implementation of diversity policies and best practices, and compliance assessments and audits that are designed to take a proactive approach to prevent, cure or eliminate situations that can potentially lead to litigation, employee turnover or adverse publicity. (See Thelen's Corporate Diversity Counseling and Risk Mitigation practice.)
Counseling and Litigation Prevention
At Thelen we know that employment matters can present costly operational distractions and consume a great deal of management's time and resources. As a national leader in the defense of labor and employment litigation, including collective and complex class actions, the strength of our practice lies in the scope of our expertise and commitment to client service, litigation avoidance strategies, and efficient case management. To help our clients prevent employment lawsuits and position themselves to take maximum advantage of all available defenses, if and when they are sued, we offer proactive measures, such as those available through our compliance audit program. An audit can identify areas of potential vulnerability with respect to employment agreements, recruiting, hiring, handbooks, performance evaluations, discharge procedures, drug and alcohol testing, management and supervisor training, and related issues, which are sometimes unique to a client's business or industry. A compliance audit of current practices, including wage and hour practices, can be a critical first step in preventing costly class action litigation.Additionally, we offer a range of other preventative legal services, including training programs for management, preparation and review of human resources policies, timely updates on legal developments, development of EEO/affirmative action plans, and sexual harassment supervisor training, to name a few.
Employment Litigation Services
Recent court decisions have clearly demonstrated the importance of maintaining appropriate and consistent workplace policies and procedures. Businesses are increasingly faced with the need to manage operations effectively and minimize the risks of liability arising from workplace claims relating to:
Our focus is on prevention. We help employers avoid disputes through the implementation of best practices, training and compliance measures. However, when our clients are faced with employment claims, we defend them successfully in court and before governmental agencies. Our attorneys appear in state and federal trial and appellate courts throughout the United States, before the National Labor Relations Board, the National Mediation Board, the National Association of Securities Dealers, the New York Stock Exchange, the American Arbitration Association, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and state EEO agencies, as well as in the United States Supreme Court. Regardless of the size or scope of the litigation, we pride ourselves on our ability to successfully defend cases in a pragmatic, cost-effective manner.
Our attorneys also have substantial experience representing clients in connection with national and regional managed employment litigation programs-programs which clients have implemented in order to consolidate legal services providers. We are uniquely qualified to offer companies considering such programs the benefit of our proven success in managing labor and employment law issues for large companies facing a substantial volume of employment litigation. Our success is backed by a litigation model designed to manage costs and a group of attorneys who will be part of a dedicated client team that will become knowledgeable about the company's operations, business objectives, and culture.
Executive and Equity Compensation
Our attorneys provide advice on all legal aspects of ERISA and employee benefits administration. We assist in drafting and implementing medical expense reimbursement plans. We also offer expertise in executive compensation, including compensation plans and employment agreements for senior management and other employee groups or individuals, to ensure compliance with tax, ERISA, Sarbanes-Oxley, and other applicable regulations. We regularly advise and assist clients regarding health and welfare plans, retirement plans, employee stock option plans (ESOP), and other employer-provided benefits, including group life insurance, education benefits, group legal services, and childcare benefits. (See Thelen's Executive and Equity Compensation practice.)
ERISA Litigation
Thelen attorneys include some of the top ERISA specialists in the country. Our ERISA Litigation team has represented employers, plan service providers, fiduciaries, and other sophisticated financial and service providers for more than 30 years in state court, Federal District and Bankruptcy Courts, the Federal Circuit Courts of Appeals, and the United States Supreme Court. Additionally, we have represented clients in investigations and administrative proceedings before the U.S. Department of Labor, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, the Internal Revenue Service, and the Securities and Exchange Commission. (See Thelen's ERISA practice.)
Government Contracts
Our attorneys represent employers with government contracts in cases arising out of prevailing wage obligations under the Service Contract Labor Standards Act, the Walsh-Healey Government Contracts Act, affirmative action plans, Office of Federal Contract Compliance, and other laws and regulations, including laws that impose prevailing wage and benefit levels on federally assisted construction projects. Our attorneys help employers satisfy the equal-employment obligations of government procurement contracts and licenses.
Immigration Law
The Labor & Employment attorneys at Thelen provide expert advice on all aspects of hiring and transferring key foreign professionals. We represent clients before the U.S. Department of Labor, U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Department of State, U.S. consulates overseas, and state departments of labor. We address issues concerning prevailing wage requests, labor condition applications, labor certification applications, priority worker petitions, visa revalidations, and naturalization applications. Additionally, we represent domestic and international companies before foreign consulates in matters, such as securing visas for personnel to be transferred abroad. (See Thelen's Immigration practice.)
Labor and Employment Services in China
Thelen's Labor and Employment practice also offers services to clients in China. Through our attorneys in the firm's Shanghai office, we regularly counsel clients on local, provincial, and national regulations that govern the workforce in China. (See a description of Thelen's Labor and Employment Services in China practice.)
Labor Management Relations
Thelen attorneys have achieved success for our clients in traditional labor law matters, including union organizing campaigns, collective bargaining negotiations, labor arbitrations, unfair labor practice charges and other proceedings before the National Labor Relations Board. We have won favorable court decisions for clients in response to unlawful strikes and work stoppages.
We advise clients in labor relations issues related to complex labor matters, such as termination of pension plans for companies in bankruptcy protection, as well as plant closures, business transfers, subcontracting, mergers and acquisitions, and other changes in our clients' businesses that impact union-represented employees.
Occupational Safety & Health
Our Labor & Employment attorneys have substantial experience in all aspects of occupational safety and health regulation. We have handled cases before federal state OSHA agencies, such as CAL-OSHA, as well as other agencies that regulate safety and health in specialized industries. Our attorneys represent clients in a broad range of industries, including energy and electric utilities, construction, chemical, petrochemical, refining, manufacturing, retail, transportation, and healthcare. We represent clients in OSHA investigations, citations, and litigation, and offer assistance with compliance advice and internal investigations. Additionally, we advise on the interpretation of OSHA standards and regulations. (See Thelen's OSHA practice.)
Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs Audit Services
Ensuring successful compliance with affirmative action and nondiscrimination laws requires expert assistance.Many of the laws and regulations governing affirmative action recently have been amended. Contractors noare required to comply with regulations governing "internet applicants," while observing both the OFCCP anthe EEOC's differing requirements regarding the categories of racial and ethnic data collected on employeesand applicants. In addition, the OFCCP recently released to its regional offices a list of approximately 5,000supply and service contractor establishments that may be scheduled for Compliance Reviews between nowand the Fall of 2008. Thelen's Corporate Diversity Risk Management attorneys have extensive experiencerepresenting contractors both during Compliance Reviews and before through our Pre-OFCCP audit, whichallows a company to address any issues or problem areas before the OFCCP comes knocking at the door. (See Thelen's OFCCP Audit Services practice.)
Organizational Restructuring and Mergers and Acquisitions
Thelen's attorneys provide labor and employment law counseling and advice to companies involved in organizational restructuring, mergers and acquisitions, and other transitions in areas related to:
Sarbanes-Oxley Investigations
Our Labor and Employment attorneys have extensive experience in defending against "whistle-blower" claims, including claims brought under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and its implementing regulations. Our firm-wide experience in these matters allows us to provide quality representation at all stages of the litigation process. In addition to litigation, we provide independent investigations for audit committees as required by the statute.
Wage and Hour Law
Thelen has extensive experience successfully defending against high-stakes, complex wage and hour and employment litigation, including large class actions and multi-district lawsuits. The firm's in-depth knowledge and experience in this area is the result of our Class Action team, led by highly respected wage and hour and employment law experts with decades of experience and who have been counsel of record on some of the most important wage and hour decisions in recent years. (See Thelen's Wage and Hour Class Action practice.)
To learn more about Thelen's Labor and Employment practice, please contact the following:
Linda S. Husar
National Chair, Labor and Employment Department
Los Angeles
Tel: 213.576.8017
lshusar@thelen.com
Hartford Los Angeles New York Northern NJ San Francisco Shanghai Silicon Valley Washington, DC
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