2007 Labor & Employment Seminar
Complete Conference Handout (click titles below to open the individual course handout)
DEVELOPMENTS IN EMPLOYMENT LAW - Annual update of Supreme Court and significant appellate, federal and Tennessee cases and their application for employment practices and litigation in key areas, including discrimination based on age, race, gender, equal pay, harassment, disability, the FMLA and many others. Edward G. Phillips
HOW TO DEAL WITH A DEPARTMENT OF LABOR WAGE HOUR AUDIT - What would you do if your company received a letter from the United States Department of Labor ("DOL") stating that an investigator would be at the door in the next few days to talk to the company's employees and examine its wage and hour records? Worse, what if an investigator showed up unannounced and demanded to speak with employees and rifle throughout the company's records? This session addresses the DOL's audit process and suggests ways to prepare your company when faced with an investigation. Robert L. Bowman, Bill Rucinski
MANAGING THE EMPLOYEE WHO IS ABSENT - Injured and ill employees who miss work for long periods of time or intermittently raise multiple complex issues. This session addresses practical issues such as when an employer is on "notice" of an FMLA event, how to analyze leave rights under the FMLA and the ADA, how to deal with intermittent leave, requesting additional medical information, retuning employees to work and many more. Edward G. Phillips
SETTLEMENT OF EMPLOYEE DISPUTES - Enforcement issues in waivers/releases of employment claims, compliance with the OWBPA, and strategies for successfully obtaining settlement agreements. Also addressed: The validity of non-competition, non-solicitation and confidentiality clauses, as well as tax issues arising from settlement payments. Betsy J. Beck
REQUIRED ELECTRONIC RECORDKEEPING AND DISCOVERY ISSUES UNDER NEWLY-AMENDED FEDERAL RULES - Recent amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure have crystallized employers' obligations to preserve and produce relevant electronically stored information. Multi-million dollar verdicts have turned on the presence or absence of even routine employee documentation. This session will explain how to enhance your recordkeeping and management practices so that you comply with the law and obtain possible advantages in employment litigation. Charles E. Young Jr.
APPLICATION OF NLRB TO NON-UNION EMPLOYERS - An update on recent legislative and case law developments affecting non-union and union employers alike, including the current status of the "Employee Free Choice Act" and corporate smear campaigns. Steven E. Kramer
SUCCESSFULLY DEFENDING WORKERS' COMPENSATION CLAIMS - Exposure for workers' compensation claims may be one of the largest expenses employers face in the future. This session discusses practical tips to help employers avoid certain claims and minimize the impact of others. Beecher A. Bartlett
IMMIGRATION UPDATE - Hot topics in employment immigration matters, including the latest legislative developments. Susan Schultz Davis
WHAT HR MANAGERS NEED TO KNOW TO AVOID ERISA PITFALLS - As the "baby-boom generation" ages, the number and value of ERISA claims HR managers will be call upon to address will increase dramatically. While HR managers are not generally tasked with administering ERISA plans, HR personnel have inadvertently created liability for employers. Learn when silence is golden and deadly. John C. Burgin Jr.
TRADE SECRET CLAIMS AND COVENANTS NOT TO COMPETE - Carefully defining your trade secret(s), how the HR departments can help position an effective case, what to do when your employee has breached trade secret non-competition responsibilities, minimizing risk of hiring talent who will be accused of stealing trade secrets, drafting effective and enforceable agreements. John E. Winters