Employment & Labor

We help clients manage

• Properly classifying and paying employees under federal and state laws, including the FLSA, Davis-Bacon Act and Service Contract Act
• Internal investigations including wage-hour audits
• EEOC or NLRB charges, OFCCP audits and OSHA inspections
• Claims of harassment, retaliation and discrimination
• Positive employee relations strategies
• Lawful responses to union organizing
• Training of management on compliance with federal and state employment laws

Guiding employers across various industry sectors

Our clients have included public and private companies across a range of industry sectors

• Manufacturing
• Distribution and Transportation
• Healthcare
• Medical Devices
• Financial Services
• Construction
• Real Estate
• Utilities
• Consulting and Outsourcing
• Restaurant and Retail Industries
• Colleges and Universities

• 55+ attorneys practicing Labor, Employment, Benefits and Immigration
• Attorney team includes seasoned and battle-hardened front line practitioners before the NLRB, EEOC, state, and federal courts, and arbitrators
• Access to broader Nelson Mullins platform and colleagues with experience across a range of practice areas, including ERISA, Executive Compensation, Employee Benefits, Corporate, Tax, Litigation, and Government Relations

Navigate state and federal laws laden with potential pitfalls

Our team works with a diverse group of employers—some with large in-house legal, human resources, and labor/employee relations teams, and others with limited or no in-house support.  We collaborate directly with your management team to increase efficiencies and synergies that support your business and employee relations goals.

• Understand legal obligations − including providing guidance and training regarding Title VII, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, Family and Medical Leave Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act, the National Labor Relations Act, and various other federal and state labor and employment laws
• Implement effective policies and procedures to comply with legal requirements and avoid potential litigation − our team works closely with your human resources department to guide on implementing policies for recruitment, hiring and firing, anti-harassment awareness training, corporate and human resources investigations, e-mail, internet, and social media issues in the workplace
• Defend individual, class and collective actions − when you receive notice of a pending suit, our team is ready to represent you in any jurisdiction, nationwide
• Develop early warning union prevention programs − our team assists clients to minimize labor risks by developing an appropriate employee relations infrastructure, including assessment of vulnerability, and training on detection of early warning signs of union organizing and promptly responding to that activity
• Properly hire and retain employees − we understand that successful retention of employees starts with developing and executing an employment plan that includes executive compensation, incentives, employment agreements, immigration authorization, Form I-9 compliance, protecting network security and confidential information when turnover inevitably occurs, and severance packages.
• Manage changing business conditions − whether your company is growing, downsizing, or merging, our team can help identify and mitigate employee and labor relations risks

Following is a selected sampling of matters and is provided for informational purposes only. Past success does not indicate the likelihood of success in any future matter.

Employment Litigation

• Successful defense verdict for North Carolina corporation in Federal District Court action alleging gender discrimination under Title VII and alleging damages in excess of $750,000
• Successful defense verdict following three-week trial in Federal District Court action alleging employees and new employer had misappropriated trade secrets, violated noncompetition agreements, and infringed patents
• Successful reversal by the South Carolina Supreme Court of trial court’s order denying employer’s Motion to Compel Arbitration of employment agreement in wrongful termination action filed by client’s executive vice president. See Landers v. FDIC, 402 S.C. 100, 739 S.E.2d 209 (2013)
• Successful reversal by the South Carolina Court of Appeals of trial court’s order denying employer’s Motion to Compel Arbitration of agreement between employee and placement agency in wrongful termination action filed by employee. See Pearson v. Hilton Head Hosp., 400 S.C. 281, 733 S.E.2d 597 (Ct. App. 2012)
• Successful defense of action brought in Federal District Court by graduate student seeking preliminary injunction to afford him additional time to complete professional standardized test as an accommodation for his alleged disabilities
• Successful appeal at the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals of wage and hour collective action on behalf of large public utility
• Successful appeal for highway engineering firm from multiple OSHA citations following an accidental death
• Successful appeal before the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals for national health insurer under ERISA
• Successful dismissal of action for wrongful termination brought against local and national church by minister terminated for cause
• Successful defense of national property developer in multiple lawsuits asserting that properties it managed did not comply with public accommodation requirements under the Americans with Disabilities Act
• Defense verdict for supermarket chain on employment claim filed in Tennessee and referred to the bankruptcy court on the merits of the claim

Labor Relations

• Successfully conducted union campaigns across the US
• National partnering with global paper and packaging company in connection with union organizing efforts leading to successful campaigns since 1999 despite the fact that the company itself is over 50% organized
• Successful investigation and integration with federal and state law enforcement regarding potential threat by an employee who had allegedly become radicalized by a foreign national
• Successful representation of national healthcare distribution company in numerous campaigns and the successful outsourcing of company’s transportation systems without union challenge
• Successful representation of major food manufacturer in union campaign in which the NLRB brought claims that employees were unlawfully terminated
• Despite the NLRB’s approval of “micro-units,” successfully argued that a wall-to-wall unit was the appropriate unit for a national retailer’s retail location rather than a unit of sales associates sought by the petitioner
• Vacating of unfavorable arbitration award (tried by other counsel).  MidAmerican Energy Co. v. IBEW Local 499, 345 F.3d 616 (8^th Cir. 2003)
• Planning and execution of corporate strategies in response to union job actions and corporate campaigns

Independent Investigations

• Assist manufacturing client to investigate the alleged criminal use of work computer, avoiding liability to the former employee or third-parties alleging wrongful possession of illegal data
• Respond to concerns on behalf of medical facility that a surgeon-partner was performing intricate procedures under the influence of alcohol, ultimately leading to the physician’s termination
• Investigate claims by union of unfair labor practices

Outside Counsel

• Serving as primary national employment counsel for manufacturer of manufactured homes and travel trailers with approximately 34 manufacturing centers and 13,000 employees nationwide
• Advise South Carolina college on equal employment practices under Title VII and student policies and practices under Title IX.
• Review and revise Title IX student discrimination and harassment policies for large public university