Employment and Labor

With heightened employee awareness about workplace harassment and other claims, a more transitory workforce, and an increasingly competitive business landscape, it is important for employer organizations to take steps in order to protect against workplace claims, which can include claims alleging sexual harassment and discrimination, non-payment of wages, employment contract issues, and non-compliance with various state and federal mandates.

Morrison Mahoney can become an extension of your team and help you manage all stages of the employee lifecycle, negotiate employment agreements, and defend your company against workplace claims that may be lodged against your organization.

MORRISON MAHONEY EMPLOYMENT AND LABOR LAW SERVICES

Morrison Mahoney provides labor and employment consultation, discrimination and harassment training and investigations, and defense of litigation at state and federal administrative agencies and in State and Federal Court. Our approach to labor and employment counseling is built upon years of litigation experience trying employment disputes to juries, judges, and arbitrators and at administrative agencies.

In our years working with hundreds of different employer organizations, we understand the consequences of bad employment decisions. We offer proactive, preventative advice to clients and provide:

Employee Lifecycle Services

We support all aspects of the lifecycle of your employees including:

• Hiring—As employees enter your organization, you need support drafting offer letters, employment agreements, buy-in agreements, buy-out agreements, and other employment-related contracts. Our experienced, proficient attorneys can draft contracts and employment agreements for your company.
• Training—Regular training in equal employment opportunity laws is required by the law and is a critical management tool to ensure a healthy, safe work environment. We offer training programs to assist you in establishing and maintaining a workplace environment free of claims and liability.
• Investigations—When a discrimination or harassment complaint is made, employers need a skilled resource to conduct impartial fact-finding inquiries, sometimes with the protection of the attorney-client privilege. Our attorneys can be retained to conduct, supervise, coordinate, and/or manage all kinds of internal investigations regarding harassment and discrimination.
• Terminations—As employees are asked to leave your organization, it’s important to end your employment relationships properly. Our team is experienced in planning for terminations and/or reductions in force (RIF). We routinely draft severance agreements, separation agreements, and formal releases of legal claims.
• Dispute resolution—Sometimes, despite all your proactive efforts, disagreements arise and you require skilled trial lawyers to defend your organization against claims of unlawful discrimination or harassment, wrongful discharge, wage claims, and disputes arising from separation from employment. Our attorneys are skilled in all aspects of dispute resolution and can provide informed advice to help guide your company to the desired outcome.

Management Support Services

We also work with your management team and provide:

• Negotiation support – As your company engages in labor negotiations, it’s prudent to have an outside legal resource support your management team. We partner with you to understand your labor objectives and work to advocate for a quick resolution in support of your goals.
• HR support – It’s a challenge managing the needs of a diverse workforce. We provide general human resource consulting and advice including guidance regarding progressive discipline for employees, and creation of employment handbooks and policies for companies.
• Claims support – As you work to handle and submit claims, you’ll benefit from the recommendations of an informed resource. We advise clients on how to handle a variety of claims including disciplinary issues related to Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and wage and hour claims. We have expertise in helping with issues related to Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA).
• Advice on FMLA claims and wage and hour claims. We have expertise related to ADA and OSHA.

WHO WE WORK WITH

We typically engage with the management side of an organization and represent mid-size, regional corporations (LLC or LLP) that are established and based in New England.

We work across industries including:

• Municipalities
• Public entities
• Transportation companies
• Banks
• Real estate brokerages
• Retailers
• Manufacturers

SPECIAL FOCUS: DISCRIMINATION AND HARASSMENT LAW

It’s more important than ever to make sure your organization is doing everything it can to protect itself from discrimination and harassment claims. At Morrison Mahoney, our perspective is grounded in years of litigation experience – and we are skilled at handling all aspects of a lawsuit.

We investigate harassment claims and give guidance on how to handle these allegations. Several attorneys at Morrison Mahoney are trained discrimination and harassment investigators with certification from the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD). These specially-skilled attorneys are able to counsel and assist employers with regard to their need to investigate complaints of discrimination, sexual harassment, harassment based upon a protected class, and retaliation.

Your business also benefits from training to protect management from claims and to educate the workforce in an effort to proactively prevent claims. Members of our team are certified by the MCAD in discrimination and harassment prevention training for managers, human resources professionals, and non-supervisory employees.

Our training offerings include:

• Preventing Discrimination and Fostering Diversity
• Preventing Workplace Harassment
• Compliance with Discrimination and Harassment Policies
• Understanding the Interplay Between Leave Laws and Disability Laws

For more information on how Morrison Mahoney can assist you with your labor and employment law issues, contact any of our employment and labor lawyers.