Sandy has been practicing labor and employment law for nearly two decades, and is well versed in all aspects of the practice. She has litigated on behalf of employers in federal and state court cases involving wage and hour issues, discrimination and harassment claims, disputes over unfair competition and trade secrets, whistleblowing claims, and more. She frequently also handles litigation on behalf of employers in labor arbitrations and in proceedings before quasi-judicial agencies including the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing, the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement, the National Labor Relations Board and the Department of Labor. Her complex litigation experience is vast as well, having led teams in the successful defense of federal and state class actions involving overtime, on-call time, meal/rest breaks, and business expenses, to name a few.
A substantial part of Sandy's practice involves partnering with her clients in an advice and counseling role, to help to manage human resources issues and to prevent litigation. She regularly consults regarding the full panoply of employment concerns, including union relations, compensation, leaves of absence, compliance with disability and family leave laws, and protection of trade secrets. She also conducts employment compliance audits, negotiates and drafts employment, separation, independent contractor and confidentiality agreements, and works with her clients to develop effective personnel policies, practices, and procedures.
Publications
"California Employment Law Answers" and "California Wage & Hour Advisor," both published by Employer Resource Institute, Editorial Advisory Board
"7 Deadly Timeclock Sins," California Employer Daily (December 2010)
"Sexual Harassment Training in California: Considerations in Complying With Government Code § 12950.1," co-author, California HR Decision Support Network, BNA (February 2010)
"A Hiring Tip That Can Keep You Out of Court," California Employer Advisor (November 2008) Link provided with the permission of Employer Resource Institute
"Splitting Up Meal Breaks: A Bad Idea," California Employer Advisor (September 2008) Link provided with the permission of Employer Resource Institute
"Resident Employees Not Entitled to On Call Pay," California Apartment Association News
"Customer Tips About Employee Drug Use—What To Do?" California Employment Law Answers (August 2008)
"Independent Contractors: What Do I Do with My 1099 Contractor Who Performs Employee Work but Doesn't Want to Become an Employee?" California Employment Law Answers (July 2008)
"Age Discrimination: We Have a Five-Year Training Program; Can We Hire Only Younger People?" California Employment Law Answers (June 2008)
"Discrimination: Can We Require New Hires to Speak English?" California Employment Law Answers (February 2008)
"Drugs and Alcohol: Can We Implement a Random Drug Testing Policy?" California Employment Law Answers (October 2007)
"Probationary Periods: How Do Probationary Periods Affect Employers' Legal Rights?" California Employment Law Answers (October 2007)
"Technology: Can We Prevent Our Employees from Putting Up a Company Website Just for Employees?" California Employment Law Answers (September 2007)
"Theft: Can We Deduct the Cost of a Loss from the Whole Team?" California Employment Law Answers (January 2007)
"Hiring: Do We Need to Wait Until All Checks Are Complete to Make an Offer of Employment?" California Employment Law Answers (November 2006)
"Employee Theft: Do We Have to Pay a New Employee Who Stole From Us?" California Employment Law Answers (September 2006)
"Background Checks: Can We Refuse to Hire Someone with a DUI?" California Employment Law Answers (July 2006)
"Absences: When Exempt Employees Exhaust Their Sick Leave but Don't Return to Work, What Should We Do?" California Employment Law Answers (July 2006)
"Training: We've Done Our Sexual Harassment Training; What Other Types of Harassment Training Do We Need?" California Employment Law Answers (March 2006)
"Meal Periods: Can We Force Workers to Work Through Them?" California Employment Law Answers (November 2005)
"Workplace Privacy: Can an Employer Open an Employee's Mail?" California Employment Law Answers (October 2005)
See All Publications
Presentations
"Five HR Tips for Public Works," American Public Works Association, Northern California Chapter (March 2012)
"California HR Laws 101: The Legal Basics Every California Employer Must Know," Employer Resource Institute (October 2011)
"Write Legal Job Descriptions and Avoid Costly ADA/FLSA Related Litigation," Center For Competitive Management (February 2011)
"What CEOs Need to Know Before Hiring Their Next Employee," ExecSense Webinar (January 2011)
"Discrimination Claims in California—What's Different and Unique," Bureau of National Affairs (December 2010)
"Prevent Off-the-Clock Work and Time Thievery," California Employment Law Update (November 2010)
"Interviewing Job Candidates: What You Legally Can And Can't Ask," HR Training Center (July 2010)
"Interviewing Job Candidates: What You Legally Can And Can't Ask," Employer Resource Institute (July 2010)
"Hands-On Job Descriptions: How to Correctly Designate Workers as Exempt or Nonexempt," ERI California Employment Law Update (November 2009)
"Hands-On Job Descriptions: How to Correctly Designate Workers as Exempt or Nonexempt," BLR National Employment Law Update (October 2009)
"Hiring: Six Key Pre-Hire Mistakes to Avoid; How to Hire Smart and Avoid Lawsuits," Employer Resource Institute (July 2009)
"Hiring: Six Key Pre-Hire Mistakes to Avoid; How to Hire Smart and Avoid Lawsuits," Business & Legal Reports (July 2009)
"Family and Medical Leave: What California Employers Need to Know—and Do—About the New Sweeping New FMLA Regs," Employer Resource Institute (March 2009)
"Hiring/Interviewing Soup to Nuts," Employer Resource Institute (November 2008)
2007 California Employment Law Update (December 2007)
"Family and Medical Leave: How to Handle Leave Requests Effectively and Reduce Your Legal Risks" (October 2007)"
"Solving Paid-Time-Off Problems in California" (June 2007)
"Terminating Employees in California Without Getting Sued: How to Minimize Your Risks of Employee Lawsuits" (February 2006)
"Privacy and the Workplace: Monitoring and Testing Employees Legally" (March and July 2005)
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