While it remains uncertain whether the Obama Administration will regain sufficient support to push through pro-union legislation during the presidential term, both employers and employees are expected to need continuing – if not increasing – guidance from lawyers on issues impacting the workplace, such as compensation structures and other benefits.
Bottom line is, whether you plan to work hard or hardly work after acing the Bar, labor and employment law is one sector worth exploring.
At least one in five people employed in the work force is a person with disabilities, according to a report released in August by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Another recent report from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission revealed the percentage of employees with disabilities in federal jobs remained stable in 2009, ending a 13-year decline since 1995. These statistics come just in time for the 20th birthday celebration of the American with Disabilities Act of 1990.
Correspondingly, a total of 93, 277 discrimination and retaliation complaints were logged in 2009, with charges of disability discrimination increasing 3 percent over the last fiscal year, recently reported the EEOC in its annual report. Many practitioners attribute this particular rise to the passage of the American with Disabilities Act Amendment Act two years ago, which expanded the scope of protection for individuals with a disability.
What does all this mean for labor and employment law practitioners? It means, plenty of work.
Many employees charge employers with discrimination as the motive for their lay-off. Whether or not the claims are meritorious, EEOC charges reflect employee response to job market losses.
“The nice thing about labor and employment law is that the nature of the cases change, depending on the upturn or downturn of the market, but the work is always there,” says Mark Shank, a partner at Gruber, Hurst, Johansen, and Hail in Dallas, Texas. With the current economy, there are lots of claims associated with terminations, reductions in force, right-sizing and down-sizing, he adds.
“It’s an emotional area,” says Shank about the practice of employment law, who mostly represents defendants. “Being accused of discrimination is very serious, and people who are accused of discrimination don’t take it very lightly.”
But on the plus side, the fact patterns are very interesting, says Shank.
“If an attorney wants to try jury cases, this is an area where there are tremendous opportunities,” adds Francis X. Dee, a partner at McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter in Newark, N.J. “In today’s economy, a terminated employee will find it more difficult to get re-employed, so it’s more difficult to get cases settled.”
It’s a challenging field with a lot at stake, granting both sides a lot of risk, she adds.
Labor and emloyment law, while a niche practice, is a broad area related to any matter involving employers and employees (except workers compensation), says Dee. Therefore, it can be a very broad practice area if someone wants to do traditional labor law, employment discrimination, whistleblower law and non-compete litigation. For the same reason, this also makes it an interesting and varied practice area.
Representing employers may involve negotiating employee benefits with third-party providers, ensuring compliance and defending claims from employees over benefits, wages or terminations. Representing employees, individually or through a union, may involve filing grievances over working conditions or wages, negotiating labor contracts or filing suits over wrongful terminations.
Whether times are good or bad for workers, labor or employment practitioners are sure to stay busy.
“With so many layoffs and cutbacks in the current economy, there has been tremendous growth in litigation from individuals alleging discrimination or wrongful termination,” says Robert W. Denney, whose marketing company tracks legal trends nationwide. Denney predicts the management of human resources and defending companies will continue to hold steady for employment lawyers.
By Julie Chen Allen for The National Jurist
