2009 Agenda 

Wednesday, September 23, 2009
7:30 am	8:30 am	Workshop Registration and Continental Breakfast
10:00 am	10:15 am	Break
8:30 am	11:30 am	(Choose 1 of 2 Workshops)
		WORKSHOP #1: WORKPLACE INVESTIGATIONS Conducting Airtight and Liability-Free Workplace Investigations: Tactics to Protect Your Organization (H7736003)
		WORKSHOP #2: LEAVE, DISABILITY, AND WORKERS’ COMP Comprehensive Update on Recent Changes and the Management of the Entangled Leave and Disability Laws: FMLA/CFRA, ADA/FEHA, Kin Care, PFL Act, Pregnancy Disability, and Workers' Comp (H7736004)
11:30 am	12:45 pm	Conference Registration and Networking Lunch
12:45 pm	1:15 pm	Opening Remarks from the Chairs Labor and Employment Law Developments in 2009 and Onward: Managing New HR Risks and Protecting Your Organization During Turbulent Times
1:15 pm	2:10 pm	KEYNOTE SESSION EEOC and Discrimination Update: New EEOC Enforcement Priorities in California and How to Safeguard Your Organization
2:10 pm	3:00 pm	FMLA/CFRA UPDATE Critical Strategies for Managing Your Leave-Law Headaches and Ensuring Compliance with Recent Changes
3:00 pm	3:15 pm	Break
3:15 pm	4:30 pm	DISCIPLINE AND TERMINATION TACTICS Safely Navigating the Legal Snares When Disciplining and Terminating Employees
4:30 pm		Day One Concludes
Thursday, September 24, 2009
7:30 am	8:30 am	Continental Breakfast and Networking Opportunity
8:30 am	8:40 am	Opening Remarks from the Chairs
8:40 am	9:40 am	PANEL DISCUSSION Cutting-Edge Solutions to New HR Management Challenges: Hear from Leading California Employers
9:40 am	10:30 am	ADA/FEHA UPDATE Managing Expanded Accommodation Requirements Under the New ADA Amendments Act and Other Thorny Issues
10:30 am	10:45 am	Break
10:45 am	11:30 pm	TECHNOLOGY TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS Solutions to Increasing Challenges: Deciphering New Rules and Court Decisions on Monitoring Employees and E-Recordkeeping!
11:30 am	12:30 pm	WORKERS’ COMPENSATION UPDATE California Workers' Comp Update: What You Need to Know About New Cases and Legislation and Vital Cost-Containment Strategies
12:30 pm	1:30 pm	Networking Lunch
1:30 pm	2:20 pm	WAGE AND HOUR LITIGATION The Latest Trends in California Wage and Hour Cases: Protecting Your Organization from Burgeoning Lawsuits
2:20 pm	3:20 pm	CALIFORNIA EMPLOYMENT LAW FACE OFF Get the Inside Scoop from Your Employees' Counsel: Plaintiff and Defense Attorneys Go Head to Head on California Employment Law Issues
3:20 pm	3:30 pm	Break
3:30 pm	4:30 pm	NEW TRENDS IN PREEMPLOYMENT SCREENING What Employers Must Know About Current and Prospective Employees to Make Prudent Employment Decisions and Avoid Liability: You Be the Judge
4:30 pm		Conference Concludes
8:30 am WORKSHOP #1: WORKPLACE INVESTIGATIONS Conducting Airtight and Liability-Free Workplace Investigations: Tactics to Protect Your Organization (H7736003) With claims for harassment, discrimination, and retaliation on the rise, it has never been more important to be prepared to respond when you receive an allegation of workplace misconduct. Conducting a prompt, thorough, and legal investigation is absolutely critical to a strong defense that will stand up to challenges in court. This interactive workshop will help provide strategies for conducting successful and liability-free workplace investigations. Topics to be discussed include: Avoiding the most common mistakes employers make Interviewing witnesses: How to ensure that you do not miss key issues Understanding when your comments to witnesses during an investigation could come back to haunt you in court The importance of involving the investigator and counsel in analyzing the information gathered, drawing conclusions, and taking disciplinary or other action Protecting the attorney-client and work-product privileges in critical communications Knowing what vital information to include in your investigation report Designing and implementing a postinvestigation action plan Communicating investigation results to the complainant and the accused Case studies of real-life workplace investigations Maureen C. O'Hara, Esq., Attorney LAW OFFICES OF PEARLMAN, BORSKA & WAX Mim McNulty, Vice President Human Resources IL FORNAIO (AMERICA) CORPORATION Back
8:30 am WORKSHOP #2: LEAVE, DISABILITY, AND WORKERS’ COMP Comprehensive Update on Recent Changes and the Management of the Entangled Leave and Disability Laws: FMLA/CFRA, ADA/FEHA, Kin Care, PFL Act, Pregnancy Disability, and Workers' Comp (H7736004) The leave, disability, and workers’ comp law labyrinth continues to cause challenges and frustrations for California HR and benefits professionals, and the recent ADA Amendments Act and new FMLA regulations have further complicated matters. This advanced interactive workshop will focus on the latest changes and how to avoid legal snares and migraine headaches while making your way through the convoluted maze of federal and state leave, disability, pregnancy, and workers’ comp laws. Clarifying the recent changes in the laws and how they impact the entanglement of leave, disability, and workers’ comp provisions Keeping your managers in compliance with leave and absence policies Managing intermittent leave, difficult scheduling accommodations, and other FMLA, FEHA, and ADA challenges, as well as the new kin care EEOC guidance Getting employees back to work and effectively managing return-to-work, modified-duty, and reassignment issues How to keep FMLA/CFRA and workers’ comp fraud and malingering to a minimum Case Studies: Analyze the most challenging “real life” scenarios and discover innovative strategies for managing these conundrums Kelly Borelli, Esq., Partner EMPLOYMENT LAW COUNSEL, LLP Dianna Barsotti, Director of Human Resources CONSTELLATION WINES U.S. Back
12:45 pm Opening Remarks from the Chairs Labor and Employment Law Developments in 2009 and Onward: Managing New HR Risks and Protecting Your Organization During Turbulent Times This year continues to be one of the most challenging years for HR professionals. Along with the economic downturn came significant changes to multiple employment laws and increasing lawsuits. This session will update you on the very latest employment law developments, what’s on the horizon for 2010, and how all of this and the stagnant economy will impact employers. The changing landscape of labor and employment laws and new challenges facing HR professionals The impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act on employers: Subsidized COBRA and unemployment compensation The latest on the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act Status of the Employee Free Choice Act New immigration enforcement initiatives from the Obama administration Maureen C. O'Hara, Esq., Attorney LAW OFFICES OF PEARLMAN, BORSKA & WAX Mim McNulty, Vice President Human Resources IL FORNAIO (AMERICA) CORPORATION Back
1:15 pm KEYNOTE SESSION EEOC and Discrimination Update: New EEOC Enforcement Priorities in California and How to Safeguard Your Organization There has been a significant increase in EEOC discrimination and harassment claims this year both in California and across the country. William Tamayo, Regional Attorney for the San Francisco District Office of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, will bring you up to date on recent EEOC initiatives to combat workplace discrimination. Hear about the latest enforcement efforts and learn what proactive measures you can take to protect your organization from liability. William R. Tamayo, Esq., Regional Attorney EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION - SAN FRANCISCO DISTRICT OFFICE Back
2:10 pm FMLA/CFRA UPDATE Critical Strategies for Managing Your Leave-Law Headaches and Ensuring Compliance with Recent Changes This year brought sweeping changes to leave laws, including new regulations from the DOL with changes to notice requirements, medical certifications, the definition of "continuing treatment" for a serious health condition, fitness for duty, and more. This session will provide you with critical updates on new changes in the leave laws as well as solutions to challenging leave and absence conundrums. Clarification on the new DOL regulations and recent FMLA/CFRA court decisions Revamping your policies and practices to ensure you are in compliance with new changes in leave laws Strategies for dealing with chronic intermittent-leave headaches What you can do to put a stop to continuing FMLA/CFRA fraud and abuse Stacey N. Sheston, Esq., Shareholder MCDONOUGH HOLLAND & ALLEN PC Back
3:15 pm DISCIPLINE AND TERMINATION TACTICS Safely Navigating the Legal Snares When Disciplining and Terminating Employees Part 1: Managing Disruptive and Insubordinate Employees: Strategies for Successfully Handling Your Toughest Challenges This session will arm you with the HR best practices and legal knowledge you need to successfully manage even the most challenging discipline problems in your workplace. Discover how to avoid discipline debacles that lead to costly litigation. Training your managers to comply with policies and the law when dealing with problem employees: Implementing airtight documentation practices and consistent enforcement of policies Avoiding the perils of managing chronically disruptive employees Where to draw the line when dealing with “bad attitudes” and workplace bullies Implementing disciplinary suspensions with or without pay: What are the legal ramifications? Part 2: Bulletproofing Your Documentation and Training Managers to Prevent Liability for Wrongful Termination and Retaliation Firing employees is always hazardous and in a turbulent economy, employers are faced with even greater risks when handling layoffs and reductions in force. Learn how to handle terminations without inviting a lawsuit and how you can significantly increase your chances of prevailing if you do end up in litigation. Decreasing your exposure when handling high-risk terminations Critical strategies for handling layoffs and reductions in force The importance of performance evaluations, exit interviews, releases, separation agreements, and more Update on recent Supreme Court rulings on retaliation: What you can do to prevent retaliation claims Defending against a wrongful-termination suit Mark P. Grajski, Esq., Partner SEYFARTH SHAW LLP Back
8:30 am Opening Remarks from the Chairs Maureen C. O'Hara, Esq., Attorney LAW OFFICES OF PEARLMAN, BORSKA & WAX Mim McNulty, Vice President Human Resources IL FORNAIO (AMERICA) CORPORATION Back
8:40 am PANEL DISCUSSION Cutting-Edge Solutions to New HR Management Challenges: Hear from Leading California Employers The economic downturn brought a dramatic increase in employment liability risks and new challenges for human resource professionals. This informative and lively panel discussion will focus on real workplace scenarios and provide you with best practices to address your biggest dilemmas. Hear from leading labor and employment law attorneys and seasoned HR professionals on the front lines who will arm you with an arsenal of proven strategies to prevent the most common and costly mistakes. Moderator: Maureen C. O'Hara, Esq., Attorney LAW OFFICES OF PEARLMAN, BORSKA & WAX Panelists: Mim McNulty, Vice President Human Resources IL FORNAIO (AMERICA) CORPORATION Kelly Borelli, Esq., Partner EMPLOYMENT LAW COUNSEL Dianna Barsotti, Director of Human Resources CONSTELLATION WINES U.S. Back
9:40 am ADA/FEHA UPDATE Managing Expanded Accommodation Requirements Under the New ADA Amendments Act and Other Thorny Issues Recent changes to the ADA and FEHA significantly expanded employer responsibilities under these laws and have resulted in more employee lawsuits. This session will provide you with updates on employer responsibilities and employee rights as well as strategies for an accommodations process that will help you steer clear of liability snares. Find out what you can do to avoid ADA/FEHA reasonable-accommodation violations. Update on the new ADA Amendments Act and how it impacts employers New court decisions interpreting the ADA and FEHA Ensuring your leave and absence policies are in compliance Strategies for implementing a proactive reasonable-accommodation process that complies with the ADA/FEHA requirements Avoiding costly ADA/FEHA violations when recruiting and hiring employees Analyzing real-life case studies Jennifer Brown Shaw, Esq., Partner SHAW VALENZA LLP Back
10:45 am TECHNOLOGY TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS Solutions to Increasing Challenges: Deciphering New Rules and Court Decisions on Monitoring Employees and E-Recordkeeping! The electronic workplace continues to present a myriad of challenges and liability risks for employers—employees texting, surfing, emailing, blogging, and networking on Facebook and MySpace, as well as multiple legal requirements for electronic recordkeeping. Learn tactics for legally and effectively monitoring your employees’ phone and Internet use to prevent misconduct, and find out what you can do to ensure your e-files are secure and in compliance. How to prevent employees’ inappropriate use of electronic devices in the workplace Ensuring that you are not violating privacy rights or electronic surveillance laws when monitoring your workers Deciphering federal and state law requirements for your electronic files Document-retention rules: Knowing what paper and/or electronic documents you are required to keep and what you can toss What you need to do to ensure the security of your electronic files Update on other recent and noteworthy cases addressing the electronic workplace Teri L. Block, Esq., Partner VANDERMYDEN BLOCK Back
11:30 am WORKERS’ COMPENSATION UPDATE California Workers' Comp Update: What You Need to Know About New Cases and Legislation and Vital Cost-Containment Strategies This session will provide you with a complete update on new workers’ comp court decisions and recent legislation and how they are likely to impact employers. Find out the vital information you need to stay in compliance and keep your costs from spiraling out of control. Topics to be addressed include: Update on the permanent-disability decisions in California and their impact on claims costs What is the status of the new apportionment law, and how do recent cases impact employers? The biggest workers’ comp cost drivers and what you can do to protect your bottom line Barry S. Pearlman, Esq., Founder LAW OFFICES OF PEARLMAN, BORSKA & WAX Back
1:30 pm WAGE AND HOUR LITIGATION The Latest Trends in California Wage and Hour Cases: Protecting Your Organization from Burgeoning Lawsuits Employers in California are continuing to see an increase in wage and hour claims, including misclassification and off-the-clock cases. By far the biggest liability exposure for employers is class action lawsuits that can result in multimillion-dollar verdicts. Find out what you can do to safeguard your organization. Update on new state and federal rules The latest trends in California wage and hour cases and how they affect your organization: Off-the-clock cases, misclassifications, and more! Learn what you can do to avoid the most common wage and hour compliance mistakes employers make Strategies for defending class action wage and hour lawsuits Melinda S. Riechert, Esq., Partner MORGAN, LEWIS & BOCKIUS LLP Back
2:20 pm CALIFORNIA EMPLOYMENT LAW FACE OFF Get the Inside Scoop from Your Employees' Counsel: Plaintiff and Defense Attorneys Go Head to Head on California Employment Law Issues Enjoy this lively point-counterpoint debate between an employment law defense attorney and a plaintiffs’ attorney who will focus on real-life workplace scenarios. Hear how each side views the issues and get inside information on why employees sue their employers. Don’t miss this opportunity to hear our panelists face off on the toughest employment law issues. Brian S. Crone, Esq., Partner BERRY & BLOCK LLP Kenneth J. Sugarman, Esq., Attorney RUDY, EXELROD, ZIEFF & LOWE, L.L.P. Back
3:30 pm NEW TRENDS IN PREEMPLOYMENT SCREENING What Employers Must Know About Current and Prospective Employees to Make Prudent Employment Decisions and Avoid Liability: You Be the Judge Employers who fail to exercise due diligence in the hiring process have found that there can be a very high price to pay. In order to avoid bad hiring decisions and the threat of lawsuits for negligent hiring and retention, preemployment background screening can serve as an essential risk management tool. In this interactive session, you will be the judge as you analyze real-life scenarios focusing on the benefits of preemployment screening and the consequences of failure to act. Update on federal and state laws that control the process of preemployment screening and background checks: Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), discrimination and privacy law, the ADA/CFRA, and more Avoiding common pitfalls when it comes to legal compliance in hiring Ensuring your policies and practices are in compliance with federal and state law Lester S. Rosen, President EMPLOYMENT SCREENING RESOURCES (ESR) Kim Kaselionis, President and CEO CIRCLE BANK Back