Employment Disputes

Employment disputes can involve issues ranging from claims of wage and hour violations or employee misclassification to workplace discrimination and wrongful termination. Often, both parties to such disputes have strong emotional involvement in addition to what may be significant financial interests.

Mediation can often offer a better path toward resolution than a lengthy and expensive court battle.

Types of Employment Disputes

Employment disputes can arise in many different situations and can involve a wide range of issues. Some common types of employment disputes that we resolve include:

Wrongful Termination Allegations

Wrongful termination claims may be filed when an employee believes that they have been fired for illegal or unjust reasons, such as discrimination, retaliation, or breach of contract. Whether or not such claims are upheld depends on specific legal protections; regardless, it is usually in the interests of both the employer and the employee to work together to arrive at a settlement that is satisfactory to everyone.

Disputes around severance are often related to wrongful termination claims. Employees may argue they are entitled to severance by the terms of their employment contract or because of promises made; employers may counter that the employee’s breach of the contract negates the claim. Often the severance dispute becomes a part of the claim for wrongful termination.

Mediation of these types of employment disputes can often take place early in the life of the claim and even before a suit is filed. At this stage, both parties have a fair idea of the facts of the case and in some instances have little need for formal discovery. Also, both employer and employee often see advantages to a confidential process and may decide to informally share whatever information each needs. One of the great advantages of mediation is that it is a flexible process and it can be shaped by the parties and their counsel to fit their needs. 

Wage and Hour Disputes

Many states have strengthened some of their laws intended to protect the payment of employees’ wages and enforce the state’s rules on minimum wage and overtime. In Massachusetts, if laws are violated, whether intentionally or not, employers are vulnerable to multiple damages and payment of the plaintiff’s attorneys’ fees. Significant sums can be at stake, sometimes resulting in expensive and lengthy litigation, compounding problems for both employees and the company.

We see these disputes both in the context of an employer being sued by an individual employee, and increasingly, in class actions.

The individual plaintiff may be claiming deprivation of commissions, bonuses, vacation pay, or stock options. There may be disputes about the legitimacy of claims for entitlement to those as well as whether some of those denials qualify for multiple damages.

Individual claims often come together with the termination of the plaintiff’s employment, and the plaintiff may believe that the termination was the result of retaliation for the initial claim — the retaliation prohibited under many state statutes. 

Both employee and employer may then have strong emotions about their positions, making mediation a good alternative to both rather than letting the emotions fuel protracted litigation.

Wage and Hour Class Actions

Wage and hour class actions have multiplied in recent years in Massachusetts and other states, raising claims that groups of employees have not been paid their rightful amount of minimum wages, improper deductions have been taken, or overtime and premium time have been underpaid.

Litigation of these claims can be complex, raising questions not only about the employer’s systemic practices but also about whether the requirements for a class action have been met. Litigating the case through to the end is likely expensive and often with considerable risks to both sides, among them — large judgments against employers and the risk of a class failure for employees.

Mediation turns out to be effective for shortening the process, minimizing expense, and reducing risk for both sides.

Claims of Independent Contractor Misclassification

Whether a worker is properly considered an employee with the resultant benefits and protections or an independent contractor is not always straightforward. A worker’s classification can have a significant financial impact on both the company and its workers, and different states and the federal government have different tests for distinguishing them.

Much like wage and hour disputes, these claims can arise on an individual basis, or in class actions. As with other types of class actions, mediation and arbitration carry similar advantages to protracted litigation — quicker resolution, less expense, and reduction of risk. 

Discrimination or Harassment Claims

Claims of workplace discrimination or harassment involving unfair treatment based on race, gender, age, disability, sexual orientation, or other factors, are often highly charged. Those raising the claim are usually feeling sufficiently aggrieved to bring the claim, and the managers, fellow employees, or company officials against whom the claim is made often feel unfairly accused.

In such cases, prolonged litigation of the claims is not only costly and time-consuming, but it often causes a second level of hurt in which the attacks going both ways exacerbate the original pain and make the workplace more toxic. Mediation, especially early in the dispute process, allows for less costly and speedier resolutions with less risk to each side, but also a greater chance of minimizing second-level harm. 

Claims of Retaliation

Claims of discrimination and harassment are often accompanied by a claim that when the employee(s) raised the claim or engaged in other similarly protected conduct, they suffered retaliation from the employer. 

This secondary retaliation claim can then become as significant as the original claim of discrimination and the damages that flow from it can mount. Mediation allows the parties to address all parts of a claim and the experienced mediator can assist the parties in coming to an earlier, less costly, and less risky resolution. 

In addition, litigation has very little chance of helping the parties change what may be a toxic atmosphere in the workplace. Mediation opens the opportunity for creative solutions, which, too often, are closed off by the very fact of bringing a claim. At The Mediation Group, we can offer one or more of our workplace consultants to work with employees, managers, human resource personnel, and other company representatives to address the root cause underlying these issues in order to create a healthier, more productive, and more respectful work environment.

Whether you’re an employee or employer, mediation and arbitration can be effective tools for handling workplace disputes and fostering productive relations between all parties. Contact us to learn more.

Our Experts Specializing in Civil Disputes