Labor & Employment

We have a heavy emphasis on representing clients in the education and healthcare industries. We regularly represent one of the largest health care systems in the region in litigation involving discrimination, retaliation, harassment and whistleblower law claims under the ADA, ADEA, FMLA, Title VII, Section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act, the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act, the Philadelphia Fair Practices Ordinance, and the Pennsylvania Whistleblower Law.

While the substantive scope of our employment practice is broad, we have particular expertise and depth in representing clients in restrictive covenant and trade secret matters. This practice includes representing companies and individuals in federal and state courts in time-sensitive litigation where temporary restraining orders and preliminary injunctions are sought, conducting forensic investigations into trade secret theft, negotiating restrictive covenant carveouts, and counseling clients on onboarding and exiting best practices regarding talent management.

Our award-winning labor and employment team regularly counsels both public and private employer clients to reduce risk related to a wide variety of workforce issues. This has become particularly crucial to our clients since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, as they try to navigate the regularly changing federal, state and local guidelines, ordinances, and orders. We also are particularly adept at handling whistleblower issues, wage and hour, and discrimination and harassment matters.

Compliance Counseling

With our client’s goals, concerns, and past policies and practices always in mind, we provide counsel on negotiating executive employment and severance agreements, reviewing and drafting employment policies, and advising clients related to the hiring, discipline and termination of employees, workforce reductions, and employer obligations. Further, our team serves as trusted outside counsel on day-to-day employment issues, including, among others, those involving:

• Family and Medical Leave Act.
• Fair Labor Standards Act.
• Anti-discrimination statutes such as the Americans with Disabilities Act, Title VII and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act.
• Occupational Safety and Health Act.
• State and local sick leave and wage payment laws.
• Drug testing and background checks.
• Employment and severance agreements.

Internal Investigations

We regularly are entrusted to conduct prompt, thorough and unbiased workplace investigations of allegations of harassment, discrimination and workplace misconduct. We conduct internal wage and hour audits to assist clients in properly classifying employees, protect against off-the-clock liability, and avoid independent contractor misclassification and joint employer liability. We also represent our clients in the context of DOL and OSHA audits and inspections.

Litigation and Dispute Resolution

Our practice focuses on defending employers in various employment litigation matters involving wrongful discharge, discrimination, disability, family leave, wage and hour, non-compete/non-solicitation injunction matters, and whistleblowing. Though based in Pennsylvania, Delaware, New York and New Jersey, our team represents clients nationally and has represented clients in courts across the country – including in at least 24 states, such as:

•California •Connecticut
•Delaware •Florida
•Illinois •Maryland
•Massachusetts •Michigan
•Missouri •Mississippi
•Nebraska •New Jersey
•New York •North Carolina
•North Dakota
•South Carolina •Ohio
•Oklahoma •Pennsylvania
•Tennessee •Texas •Virginia
•Washington •Wisconsin

Our group also has significant experience with matters related to the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act.

Representative Matters

• Representation of a company with billions of assets resulting in summary judgment in multiple matters involving discrimination, harassment and retaliation claims, as well as wage claim collective and class actions under the FLSA and state laws involving plaintiffs throughout the country.
• Representation of a financial services company in the trial victory where the client was accused of disability discrimination.
• Representation of a national weight loss product company in an FLSA and state law class and collective action brought on behalf of call center sales representatives alleging entitlement to overtime pay.
• Representation of a financial services company in the trial victory where the client was accused of religious and racial discrimination.
• Representation of a home goods company in the summary judgment for an action brought against a former sales representative who had misappropriated promotional funds and products, obtaining judgment in excess of $650,000 against a former employee.
• Representation of a healthcare provider in the trial victory where the client was accused of breach of an employment contract.
• Representation of a utility service company in the trial verdict on all counts brought by a former employee alleging pregnancy discrimination under Title VII and state law.
• Representation of our client, a bank, in the summary judgment in the client’s favor in a Title VII and state law discrimination action brought by a female, former manager.