Labor and Employment

Meyers Nave’s Labor and Employment Law Practice Group is chaired by Camille Hamilton Pating. The group consists of attorneys who focus 100 percent of their practice on labor and employment issues. Our attorneys’ awards and recognitions include “Top Labor and Employment Lawyers” (Daily Journal, 2020) and “Super Lawyers” in Employment and Labor and Employment Litigation Defense (Super Lawyers, 2007-2022).

Meyers Nave represents corporations, public entities, non-profit organizations, and public-private partnerships throughout California. We provide day-to-day counseling, draft and review employee handbooks, and conduct internal training programs. Our Labor and Employment attorneys also handle workplace investigations, administrative claims, grievances, unfair labor practices and employee relations issues, mediation, arbitration, and litigation in state and federal courts.

In 2020, Meyers Nave merged with Brown Law Group, a prominent woman- and minority owned employment law firm based in San Diego serving many of the nation’s largest employers for more than 20 years. Combining Brown Law Group with Meyers Nave’s Labor and Employment Law Practice increased the size, state-wide reach and depth of capabilities for representing employers in high impact litigation. Please click here for more information about the merger.

Employment Law & Litigation
We provide sophisticated, operations-focused advice on complex issues such as employee classification, discipline and terminations, leaves of absence, workplace culture, social media, disability issues, employee privacy and free speech rights, whistleblower laws, and management of internal and external complaints.

Our attorneys have significant expertise in drafting and revising personnel policies, employee handbooks and employment contracts, as well as conducting audits covering the entire organization or focusing on specific subjects such as hiring practices or workplace safety. When litigation is unavoidable, we have experience defending employers in single- and multi-plaintiff lawsuits involving wage-and-hour issues, wrongful termination, sexual harassment, racial discrimination, disability accommodation, retaliation, defamation, medical leave, and trade secret misappropriation, among others.

Labor Law
Our labor lawyers serve as lead negotiator and labor counsel for employers that are involved with labor organizations representing every type of employee—rank and file, management, confidential, professional, and police and fire. We have negotiated hundreds of labor contracts for small, medium, and large employers, including during challenging financial times and during the COVID-19 pandemic. We handle collective bargaining, concession and interest-based bargaining, meet and confer, discipline, grievances, unfair labor practice charges, fact-finding proceedings, interest arbitrations and administrative hearings.

Our experience includes preparation and strategy, serving as chief spokesperson at the table, advising on impasse procedures, and briefing management. We also draft and meet with unions on Employer-Employee Relations Rules governing unit and representation processes. A key strength of our negotiations practice is our experience litigating and arbitrating the same issues negotiated at the bargaining table.

Workplace Investigations
We have had a specialty Workplace Investigations group for more than 10 years, and we have conducted over 250 high-profile investigations on virtually every type of current and emerging workplace misconduct allegation, including ethics violations, hostile work environment, harassment, discrimination, bullying, retaliation, implicit bias, substance abuse and fraud, waste and abuse. We also advise on and supervise internal employer investigations to assure compliance with state and federal laws.

Meyers Nave specializes investigations that involve the leadership ranks of an organization—elected officials, board members, executive officers and management team members, department managers, and key personnel including police and fire chiefs, university faculty, school administrators and chief executive officers. As attorneys who also represent clients in employment litigation, we know how to conduct independent investigations and prepare reports that will withstand scrutiny and credibly serve in a courtroom, arbitration or public domain.

Training
The #MeToo movement revealed that traditional workplace misconduct training that focused on technical legal compliance did not have the intended effect of preventing or stopping inappropriate workplace behaviors.

Meyers Nave has created new training programs that enhance workplace culture, incorporate a practical approach and reflect modern workplace scenarios and issues. Our programs provide employees with the awareness, knowledge and tools needed to thrive in today’s complex workplace, including Political Speech on Work Platforms, Harassment and Bullying Prevention, Recognizing and Minimizing Implicit Bias, How to Have Inclusive Conversations about Difficult Issues, Protecting Due Process of the Accused while Investigating Allegations, Promoting a Respectful Workplace, and Bystander Intervention Training. Our anti-harassment training meets all mandatory requirements for employers under AB 1825, AB 1661 and SB 1343, and is available via video conference.