The attorneys in Hodgson Russ’s Labor & Employment Practice have extensive experience counseling public, private, union, and non-union clients in matters involving a wide range of labor and employment laws. We represent management exclusively.

We assist CEOs, CFOs, human resources professionals, employee benefits managers, and corporate counsel from companies headquartered across the United States and around the world with legal issues relating to managing employees and union relations. Hodgson Russ represents employers in a wide range of economic sectors and industries, including healthcare, financial institutions, manufacturing, construction, hospitality, state and local government, retail, aerodynamics, school districts, service providers, technology companies, and a wide range of other businesses.

Hodgson Russ labor and employment attorneys focus on preventive steps first. Avoidance of litigation and human resource problems is the most efficient method of minimizing the risk of costly employment disputes. However, should a dispute occur, Hodgson Russ attorneys are well prepared to assist clients in resolving disputes with current and former employees and the unions that may represent them. Keeping our clients’ fiscal, operational, and public relations needs in mind, our attorneys strive first to diffuse problematic situations without formal litigation, often using mediation from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Mediation Program, the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, and the State Employment Relations Board. In cases where it is impossible to arrive at a resolution short of litigation, Hodgson Russ attorneys aggressively seek favorable results before arbitrators, administrative agencies, and the courts.

Our Labor & Employment Practice provides ongoing education and information to clients concerning changes in laws and regulations, and we regularly present conferences and on-site training sessions for executives, managers, and supervisors, to help in preventing situations that might result in litigation.

Our attorneys practice before all government agencies and courts that adjudicate employment and labor matters, including:

  • All courts in New York State
  • Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
  • Federal District Courts, U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals, and U.S. Supreme Court
  • National Labor Relations Board
  • Public Employment Relations Board
  • Workers’ Compensation Board and Unemployment Insurance Appeal Board
  • State fair employment practices agencies
  • U.S. Department of Labor


Hodgson Russ has been awarded prestigious "Best Law Firms" National Tier 2 in the Labor Law - Management category and Metropolitan Tier 1 rankings by Best Lawyers/U.S. News & World Report in the Labor Law – Management and Employment Law – Management categories.

Our Labor & Employment Practice is also recognized by Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business.

Labor & Employment Law

Hodgson Russ’s labor and employment law practice, which has grown in scope for more than 70 years, includes extensive capabilities in matters involving the National Labor Relations Act, the Public Employees’ Fair Employment Act, and State and Federal wage and hour laws, as well as numerous civil rights laws, including the Family and Medical Leave Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, Title VII, the New York State Human Rights Law, and other laws regulating an employer’s relationship with its employees.

Hodgson Russ attorneys have extensive experience representing clients in state and federal courts as well as alternative dispute resolution forums, such as mediation and arbitration, and regularly represent clients in contested proceedings, including administrative hearings, trials, motions, and appeals.

Hodgson Russ attorneys provide counsel to employers on issues including:

  • Employment discrimination avoidance
  • Pre-employment applications, employment contracts, restrictive covenants, confidentiality and non-compete agreements, and employee handbooks
  • Affirmative action and OFCCP compliance reviews for federal contractors
  • Effective, defensible programs for drug testing, family leave, attendance improvement, supervisor training, occupational safety and health, employee benefits, work force reduction, and sexual and other unlawful harassment avoidance
  • Unemployment Insurance compliance
  • Federal and state wage and hour laws

Hodgson Russ defends employers in adversarial proceedings by:

  • Representing employers before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and state fair employment practices agencies
  • Investigating charges and complaints
  • Providing counsel and representation in court proceedings
  • Representing employers in proceedings before the National Labor Relations Board and state labor agencies
  • Handling hearings and appeals before other federal and state administrative agencies
  • Providing counsel on handling grievances, including drafting grievance answers
  • Providing representation during arbitration through witness preparation and evidence gathering, preparation of pre-hearing statements, presentation of employer’s case at hearings, and writing post-hearing briefs
  • Providing representation in audits of wage and hour and other employment practices by state and federal agencies


Labor Law

Hodgson Russ labor attorneys assist clients in managing union relationships. We also help clients who want to maintain union-free status by:

  • Providing counsel on labor practices to identify weaknesses before problems are encountered
  • Counseling and training supervisors and managers
  • Providing advice on responses to union-organizing campaigns
  • Providing advice on bargaining unit issues and employer campaigns in NLRB representation elections

Hodgson Russ attorneys help clients deal with unions that represent their employees by:

  • Recommending strategic plans for negotiations
  • Serving as spokespersons at the bargaining table
  • Analyzing cost and consequences of proposals
  • Working with mediators and other neutrals
  • Drafting proposals, counter proposals, and final contract language
  • Analyzing collective bargaining agreements
  • Counseling on strike or lockout strategies
  • Advising on documentation of incidents (affidavits, investigations)
  • Instituting legal proceedings when necessary, including actions for temporary restraining orders and preliminary or permanent injunctions
  • Defending unfair labor practice and improper practice charges
  • Assisting in filing charges where appropriate


People

News & Insights

Podcasts

  • Hiring Challenges for New Semiconductor Fabs

    Thanks to the CHIPS Act and other global pressures, there is a surge of new semiconductor fabrication plants popping up across the United States. While that’s encouraging news for the industry, it also presents some challenges for human resources departments. Aside from simply filling the available jobs, teams are also faced with numerous other challenges once the hiring bonanza at a new facility begins.

    Nathaniel and Elizabeth are joined by Andy Drilling, a senior associate at Hodgson Russ LLP who focuses on labor and employment law. Andy outlines some of the obstacles human resources teams face when filling positions at new fabs, including relocation concerns, non-solicit and non-compete clauses, and familiarity with local and state laws and regulations.

  • Post-pandemic unionization trends — and how to navigate a union organizing campaign (podcast)

    Post-pandemic unionization trends — and how to navigate a union organizing campaign (podcast)

    Starbucks, Amazon, Chipotle, Trader Joe’s and other household names have been in the news lately for their union organization campaigns, a post-pandemic trend that likely won’t change anytime soon, according to Elizabeth McPhail, partner with Hodgson Russ. She said some of these unionization efforts are a “product of the social justice movements” and they’re changing labor union organizing.

    In the latest episode of the Thought Leaders in Law and Business podcast, presented by Hodgson Russ and The Business Journals, Buffalo Business First Publisher John Tebeau interviews McPhail and her colleague Asia Evans, associate and member of the labor and employment practice at Hodgson Russ, on what employers should consider when navigating a union organizing campaign.

    “When you get a union organizing campaign and they are coming with social justice issues and cultural connectivity (concerns), if the response is just, we're paying 50 cents an hour more than the competitor down the road and their union, and we're not union free, that is not a message that's going to resonate with employees,” McPhail said.

    Listen to this episode to learn more about:

    New organizing trends and how campaigns have changed post-pandemic.The importance of understanding employees’ wants and needs.Regulatory concerns to consider when responding to efforts to unionize.Anti-unionizing efforts that don’t violate labor laws.Bargaining with employees in good faith.Lessons learned from high-profile organizing campaigns (Starbucks, Amazon, etc.).The prominent senator Evans worked with during one of her internships.

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Labor & Employment / News & Insights