Discrimination & Harassment

We regularly defend employers faced with charges of discrimination or harassment filed with either Ohio or federal civil rights commissions. Our experience includes implementing appropriate policies, advising employers with respect to equal employment opportunity issues, affirmative action compliance, supervisor training, and internal investigations of alleged discrimination and harassment.

We work closely with employers and their managers to maximize employee performance and efficiency through focused management training and clear communication of expectations. Our attorneys assist employers in the preparation of job descriptions, offer letters and employment contracts, advise managers with respect to optimizing and documenting employee performance, and counsel managers regarding how to treat employee performance impacted by leaves of absence and disability accommodation. We counsel employers regarding employee discipline, discharge and other post-discharge issues, including COBRA compliance, to minimize the risk of potential liability or costly litigation from departing employees.

We advise employers with respect to a broad range of employee privacy issues, including background and criminal investigations of employees and applicants. We revise and prepare policies regarding privacy issues pertaining to drug and alcohol testing, employee computer, phone and internet usage, and search rights of employee personal property on the employer’s premises. We counsel employers during misconduct and sexual harassment investigations which frequently raise issues relating to employee privacy, and have advised numerous employers regarding Ohio’s concealed carry law and its impact on the workplace.

We work closely with employers to ensure that their employment relationships are accurately documented to reflect their intentions and protect their interests. It is our experience that diligence at the commencement of employment relationships in the form of appropriate documentation of terms and expectations minimizes the costs and risks of future disputes. Where appropriate, we draft employment contracts with the goals of protecting employer investment in key employees, ensuring the protection of employer’s trade secrets, and preventing unfair competition in the event a key employee leaves to work for a competitor.

Although our emphasis on loss prevention is aimed at decreasing the likelihood of litigation, employment litigation is often unavoidable. We, therefore, represent employers in all types of employment-related litigation. Our lawyers regularly defend employers against claims including unlawful harassment and discrimination, wage-and-hour violations, defamation, breach of contract and quasi-contract, retaliation and whistleblower protection. We represent employers in all dispute venues, including administrative agencies, state and federal trial courts, arbitration, and appellate courts. We frequently enforce employer rights through litigation, including protection of trade secrets, enforcement of non-compete agreements, recovery of employee theft, and enjoining unlawful pickets from employees or union representatives. Our purpose is to achieve our clients’ goals in an efficient and effective manner.

Our experience includes traditional labor law, having advised Fortune 500 companies and other public and private employers regarding union avoidance, union organizing defense, and union election campaigns. We have significant collective bargaining experience, and have defended employers in grievance hearings, arbitrations, and unfair labor practice proceedings under both federal and state law. We are also frequently asked to play a key role in business mergers and acquisitions by analyzing collective bargaining agreements and other employment-related representations and warranties.

We provide timely and necessary counsel to employers regarding leaves of absence, including, but not limited to, the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), military leave, jury duty leave, pregnancy leave, and leave due to injuries covered by Ohio’s workers’ compensation law. We frequently counsel employers and managers on the impact of protected leave of absence rights on employee performance and attendance.

We understand that operating a business is more complicated than ever and seek to maximize the productivity and morale of our clients’ workforce, while minimizing employee-related costs and risks. We collaborate with clients on identifying and implementing loss prevention strategies, including practice and policy audits, contracts and policies which preserve employer rights, supervisor training, trade secret protection, performance incentives, and due diligence relative to new employee onboarding.

We work closely with employers to implement reductions in force and plant closings to insure compliance with applicable law, including the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) and the National Labor Relations Act. We regularly assist employers with respect to planning and conducting layoffs in a manner which minimizes the disruption to the remaining employees and the risk of potential liability from those employees selected for layoff.

We frequently assist employers in wage and hour compliance and claim defense, and proactively work with employers to assess exempt employee status. We assist employers in response to Department of Labor audits and have represented construction employers relative to the interpretation of Ohio and federal prevailing wage laws and the defense of actions to recover wages and penalties under such laws.

Our practice includes rendering advice regarding employer preparation for potential violence in the workplace and responding to such violence if it occurs. We guide employers through misconduct and harassment investigations which carry the possibility of violence and/or retribution and assist employers in evaluating the risks presented by the performance of safety sensitive duties by employees with disabilities. We also counsel employers with respect to OSHA safety standards and OSHA investigation defense and response.