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The Labor & Employment Practice Group’s panel, A View from the Top, may be unpresented in its number of Honorables who will be speaking. All four speakers and our moderator have survived Senate confirmation – a total of 10 times by my count, which must be some type of record. Also unprecedented is having the political leaders of the three major labor and employment agencies together on the same panel to discuss their visions for the agencies they head. 

The panel will begin with an address from Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta. With four Senate confirmations behind him, Secretary Acosta may be facing his greatest challenge yet in his long career in public service. As of this writing, Secretary Acosta remains the only Senate-confirmed appointee at the U.S. Department of Labor.Just over six months into his tenure, Secretary Acosta has a broad range of controversial issues before him – from the fiduciary rule and overtime regulations to joint employment and independent contractors. Joining the panel to answer our questions regarding the issues facing DOL is Acting Solicitor of Labor and Chief of Staff Nicholas Geale. 

But the panel is not just about the Labor Department. We will also hear from Victoria Lipnic, Acting Chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, still the sole Republican on the five-member Commission. With former Chair Jenny Yang exercising her legal option of staying on the EEOC until she is replaced or the Senate recesses; two Republican nominees awaiting Senate confirmation, and no General Counsel, it may be well into 2018 before we see any changes. The National Labor Relations Board is finally up to its full five members.  But with our speaker Chairman Philip Miscimarra leaving in September and his replacement not yet identified, the pace of change at the NLRB may also be slow. 

This panel holds the promise of giving us a glimpse of changes that may be ahead at the DOL, EEOC and NLRB. Whether or not you practice in the labor and employment space, this panel is the place to be on Thursday, November 16. See you in the Mayflower’s Grand Ballroom at 1:45 PM. 

Featured Panelists:

  • Hon. R. Alexander Acosta, Secretary, United States Department of Labor
  • Hon. Nicholas C. Geale, Chief of Staff and Acting Solicitor, United States Department of Labor
  • Hon. Victoria A. Lipnic, Commissioner and Acting Chair, United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
  • Hon. Philip A. Miscimarra, Chairman, National Labor Relations Board
  • Moderator: Hon. John K. Bush, United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit

 

Registration is required to attend the panel. Click here for more information about the conference including the schedule, registration, and lodging information. Online registration ends Monday, November 13.