Topic : The Best Defense to Employment Law Claims: Good Investigations
Presenter: Daniel R. Stern, Board Certified Labor & Employment Law, Texas Board of Legal Specialization
About Our Presenter:
Dan Stern advises employers on labor and employment matters including affirmative action plans; wage and hour issues; and discrimination and harassment claims. By recommending and developing effective employment policies and procedures, he helps clients reduce the risk of employment-related lawsuits. He is Board Certified in Labor and Employment Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.
Dan works with employer clients to bring their existing workplace policies into compliance with best practices in the human resources field, and he provides day-to-day counseling which enables clients to make wise decisions in human resource matters. Understanding the frequent and complex employment issues continually faced by today’s employers, Dan has designed his practice so that he is readily and quickly available to his clients. He is a frequent speaker and author on employment matters and labor-related legislative changes, with a particular focus on wage and hour issues.
Program Description:
This presentation will be discussion regarding conducting effective workplace investigations. The one thing that is clear about employment law claims and issues, is that nothing is clear. One method to help clarify rights and obligations when workplace problems are encountered, is to conduct a fact-based investigation in such a way to allow you to make sound employment decisions. Starting with this premise, we will review the who, what, where, when, why, and how of workplace investigations, including who should conduct the investigation, what information should be considered, when investigations must be conducted, where these investigations should take place, why conducting a proper and thorough investigation is important, and how to make sure your documents don’t become the employee’s exhibits, by effectively documenting the investigations and related results.
This topic also address the major mistakes commonly seen make during investigations, including some ended up creating a legal claim where none existed before the investigation began. Insight will also be provided on how to handle problematic scenarios, such as uncooperative employees, what to tell an employee accused of unacceptable behavior, how to handle complaints against a high level executive and more.
More topics that will be covered in the workshop are:
- How to draft witness statements so they do not become a plaintiff’s exhibit
- How much of an investigation should be shared when fighting an unemployment claim
- When should you use an independent investigator
- Requests for confidentiality
- Where should the investigation results be filed
- How to train internal resources on investigating reports of improper treatment
- What, if any, warnings must be given to employees involved in an investigation
- What right, if any, do employees have to refuse to participate in an investigation
