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ARNSTEIN & LEHR UPDATE | SPRING 2009
1
Firm launches
General Counselor 
employment law blog
Seven join Arnstein & LehrMiami of ce - strengthenrm’s Florida presence
 Attorneys in the Coral Gables law firm of Fieldstone Shear &Denberg LLP joined Arnstein & Lehr LLP on April 1.
Ron-ald Fieldstone
,
David Shear
and
Michael Denberg 
joinedthe firm as partners, while
Rebecca Abrams
,
 Yael Doron
,
Kenneth Dreyfuss
, and
Luis Flores
are now associates withthe firm. 
 Jeff Shapiro
, coordinat-ing partner of Arnstein &Lehr’s Florida operationssaid, “We are extremely pleased with the additionof these fine attorneys.Tis respected groupsupplements the firm’sbusiness capabilities inFlorida and nationwide.” Fieldstone Shear &Denberg specialized incomplex commercial,corporate, real estate,condominium, domestic and international tax matters. A majority of the firm’s lawyers and staff are now resident in Arnstein & Lehr’s Miami offi ce and the firm also retains asmall offi ce in Coral Gables. Managing Partner
Ray Werner
added, “Te Fieldstone Shear Arnstein & Lehr recently launched our blog,
General-Coun-selor.com
. It is designed as an educational resource for employ-ers, human resource professionals, general counsel and laborrelation’s offi cers to better understand their legal requirementsand obligations as governed by the federal statutes.
General-Counselor.com
is main-tained by the firm’s Labor &Employment Law Practice Groupand supported by Arnstein &Lehr’s civil litigators, associates, and other support personnel.Our group’s chair,
Paul Starkman
, oversees the blog’s contentalong with partners
Mark Spognardi
and
 Jason Tremblay 
.Our Labor & Employment Law members have extensiveexperience in client counseling and litigation before adminis-trative agencies and state and federal courts in areas includingunion-management relations, unfair labor practice proceed-ings under the National Labor Relations Act, collectivebargaining, contract administration, grievance and arbitrationproceedings, employment discrimination and affi rmative ac-tion, wrongful discharge, ERISA matters, employee benefits,occupational safety and health, wage and hour law, drug andalcohol testing, AIDS issues, employment-related immigra-tion, and general personnel administration.Te blog can be found on the Web at
http://general-counselor.com
. You may subscribe to
General-Counselor 
by email atinfo@arnstein.com or RSS feed at
General-Counselor.com/feed 
. You will then begin receiving automatic alerts whenever new articles or posts are published.
 
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inLsaiplof subFlFi
Left to right, Ronald Fieldstone, Michael Denberg, Managing Partner Raymond Werner, and David Shear.
7 Join Firm
Continued on Page 3
SPRING 2009 UPDAT
 Mid-market value. Large firm expertise.
 
WWW.ARNSTEIN.COM
2
Mark Spognardi ocuses hispractice on the representationo management in traditionaland non-traditional labor andemployment law matters,including counseling,litigation, and appellatework. His practice includesrepresentation in unair laborpractice and representationproceedings beore theNational Labor RelationsBoard; union-ree campaigns;employment discriminationmatters beore ederal andstate anti-discriminationagencies and ederal courts;Section 301 lawsuits; contractnegotiations and arbitrations;drug and alcohol testing;alternative compensationsystems; veterans’ re-employment rights; WARNAct and RIF matters; ederaland state wage and hourmatters; employment at-will;wrongul discharge andwhistle-blower lawsuits;ederal and state injunctiverelie, strike management;human resource auditsand employee handbooks;employment contracts;restrictive covenants and non-compete agreements; pensionplan withdrawal liability; andvarious other employmentrelated matters. He representsbusinesses in all industries,including manuacturing,transportation, bankingand investment, oodprocessing, textile, healthcare, retail, hospitality,construction, interim services,and publishing, media andcommunications.
EFCA 
Continued on Page 3
The threat o theEmployee Free Choice Act
by Mark Spognardi Partner, Arnstein & Lehr 
 While Congress and the Obama administrationare preoccupied with the stimulus package,employers are becoming increasing concernedabout legislation called the Employee FreeChoice Act (EFCA). Tough not currently the law, this legislation would transform laborrelations in the United States to the detrimentof employers. Anna Burger, chairperson of Change to Win and secretary-treasurer of ServiceEmployees International Union has stated,“EFCA is more important than health carereform…EFCA will be the difference betweenincremental change and transformational change…. EFCA will increase SEIU membership by 1 million members annually.” And PresidentObama has stated that he will make it the law of the land.EFCA would amend the National LaborRelations Act (NLRA) in three dramatic ways. Currently, employees desiring unionrepresentation are subject to a secret ballotelection, where they vote “yes” or “no” to berepresented by an election. EFCA wouldeffectively eliminate the secret ballot electionby requiring an employer to recognize andbargain with a union if the union presented“authorization cards” signed by 51% of itsemployees. Te amendment would also have theeffect of depriving the employer of having timeto communicate its position on the negativeeffects of unionization to employees duringthe campaign period leading up to the currentballot process. Additionally, employees may be subject to pressure and coercive tactics by unions and fellow pro-union employees to signauthorization cards, because the secret ballotelection will have been eliminated.Second, once the union is recognized as thecollective bargaining representative of employees,the employer would have to start bargaining with the union within 10 days. Tis is an
Arnstein & Lehr hostsIsraeli business trade show
On January 29, the Fort Lauderdale offi ce of  Arnstein & Lehr hosted its first annual
Doing Business in Israel rade Show and Seminar 
at theDavid Posnack Jewish Community Center inDavie, Florida.Under the guidance of Fort Lauderdale Partner
Franklin Zemel
, the event drew more than 60people. It was held in partnership with the JewishFederation of Broward County, the America-Israel Chamber of Commerce, and our client Atico, Intl.Speakers included Eyal Ben-Chanoch, CEO of Beeologics,an interna-tional firm with offi cesand labora-tories in theU.S. andIsrael thatfocuses itsresearch onrestoring beehealth andprotectingthe future of insect pollination. Also speaking was el Aviv University Professor Avi Kribus, who discussed the latest research anddevelopment initiatives in the field of renewableenergy. A third speaker was Ross Younts with the Califor-nia-based company Aquadoo, who discussed theirrevolutionary and environmentally-friendly Air Water System technology that creates water fromthe humidity in air.Te fourth speaker was Fred Glickman, vicepresident of business operations with EnterpriseFlorida, which serves as
t
he state’s economicdevelopment organization. He spoke on how theEnterprise Florida offi ce in Ramat Gan, Israel,
Israeli Trade Show 
Continued on Page 4 
 
ARNSTEIN & LEHR UPDATE | SPRING 2009
3
 Attorneys featured in this issue
EFCA 
Continued from Page 2 
Rebecca AbramsWilliam AnayaJames BradySteven DanielsMichael DenbergYael Doron
insuffi cient amount of time to formulate proposals and establishan employer bargaining committee. If a contract is not reached within 90 days, the employer is required to go to mediation beforethe Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service for 30 days. If no agreement is reached at that point, the employer is required tosubmit to binding interest arbitration before a neutral arbitrator who will determine the wages, benefits and other terms andconditions of employment of the employees for a two year unioncontract. Besides the frightening proposition that a third party willdecide the compensation and benefits of an employer’s employees,the legislation fails to address what standards the arbitrator shall usein making his award. Te legislation does not contemplate appealsfrom an arbitrator’s award.Tis portion of EFCA is extremely troubling. An arbitrator couldplace a healthy or struggling employer in a non-competitive orprecarious financial position by granting significant increases in wages, benefits and other terms of competition. Te arbitrator would also have final say over pensions, hours of employment,subcontracting, severance, and discipline and discharge of employees. While the statute contemplates that the arbitrator willdecide what is in the first two year agreement, nothing in the statuteprevents the arbitrator from requiring binding interest arbitration of successor agreements.Finally, EFCA would significantly increase the penalties facedby employers who intentionally or inadvertently commit unfairlabor practices. Currently, employers are only required to pay back pay and provide reinstatement to employees discharged forunion activity. Other violations of the NLRA, such as unlawfulinterrogation or threats, are subject to a cease and desist order, anda requirement that the employer post a notice stating it will notviolate the law again. EFCA would require that the employer pay treble damages for unlawful discharges plus a civil penalty of up to$20,000, and civil penalties of up to $20,000 for all other unfairlabor practices.Tere are many questions left unanswered by EFCA. For instance,how long will the authorization cards be valid? What if an employeeclaims he signed a card involuntarily? How can a card be checkedfor forgery? How can an employer challenge the appropriatenessof the claimed bargainingunit? What will be thestandards for arbitration?EFCA is not the law yet.In 2007, EFCA passedthrough the Democraticcontrolled house by a voteof 241 to 185. It wasstopped by one vote in theSenate. While Congress and the President are currently preoccupied with the stimulus package on February 4, organized labor presentedCongress with a petition signed by a million and a half employeessupporting EFCA. Rep. George Miller of California is expected toreintroduce EFCA in the “near future.” While the House is firmly in Democratic control, the Senate may be able to get a filibusterproof majority. It is also possible that there may be a bipartisancompromise that may replace the card check provisions with“quickie” secret ballot elections, or remove the interest arbitrationprovisions. What can be done to protect your company? Contact your electedoffi cials to let them know how you feel about this legislation.Conduct a human resources audit to determine the health of yourorganization. Tis includes reviewing policies and practices, andconducting employee satisfaction surveys. Educate employees andmanagers about your union-free philosophy, the dangers involved insigning a union authorization card, and the negative consequencesof unionization. And, educate your managers about lawful andeffective union avoidance techniques. In the end, a smart employer will be prepared to run a permanent union-free campaign.
7 Join Firm
Continued from Page 1
& Denberg firm is comprised of seven prominent South Florida at-torneys and is very compatible with our firm’s practice, philosophy and culture. It’s a perfect fit, resulting in one firm with a signifi-cantly strengthened set of core services.” “We are excited to join forces with Arnstein & Lehr,” said theFieldstone partners. “Te firm has a solid reputation and talentedattorneys that enable us to better service our clients in a broadrange of areas, both in the state of Florida and nationally.
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