Fran Sepler, Bill Judge, Rush Nigut and Jill Jensen Welch to speak at Iowa Employment, Training and Benefits Conference April 21^st

We are very fortunate to add four (4) excellent speakers to our list of presenters for the April 21^st conference being held at The Meadows in Altoona.

Fran Sepler, a nationally known speaker on employment investigations, will first present a session titled Investigation Preparedness.  When issues arise that call for an investigation, organizations must be prepared to act.  The "administrative skeleton" of an investigation involves having policies in place that eliminate barriers to investigation, agreements with collective bargaining units to facilitate effective access to employees, procedures to ensure consistency and quality, and tools and templates to assist those in the trenches.  This session will cover all of the elements an organization should have in place before a complaint is received, and will include templates and samples for participants to adapt for their own use.

Ms. Sepler's second session, Bulletproof Investigations, will address how to investigate a complaint and take action as a result of that complaint.  After a charge has been filed or a lawsuit has been brought, your investigation will be under scrutiny.  She will cover such questions as:

• Will your investigation stand up?

• Who will be critiquing your work?

• Where will the bullets be aimed?

• Will your methods measure up to "best practices?"

Bill Judge is considered to be the most knowledgeable person in the Midwest on drug testing.  His sessions will cover drug testing in the workplace, developing effective drug and alcohol policies, and how a well written drug and alcohol policy can limit liability and disparate treatment claims.

Rush Nigut, a member of the Brick Law Firm, is considered a leading expert in business and corporate law.  He will be speaking about the dangers and pitfalls in the electronic workplace, including copyright violations, retention requirements, and considerations for blogs.

Jill Jensen Welch, one of the premier employment law attorneys in central Iowa, will speak on the ADAAA.  Ms. Jensen will cover the significant changes in the ADAAA, effective January 1, 2009, that will have an impact on employers of all sizes.  In this session you will learn about the changes to the law and the expected impacts on employers, including:

• Mitigating Measures - Overturning U.S. Supreme Court precedent so that mitigating measures are no longer considered when determining who is "disabled" and protected by the ADA (with one small exception).  What's gone and what's left?

• Substantially Limited - Lowering the standard for "substantially limited" so more persons qualify for ADA protection.

• Major Life Activities - Broadening the definition of "major life activities," including a new subcategory called "major bodily functions."

• Episodic Impairments - Setting a new bright line test for when episodic impairments are protected disabilities.

• Regarded As - Significantly lowering the standard, and raising the risk, for "regarded as" disabled claims.

For more information on speakers and their topics, please visit our conference schedule page.

The conference will be held at the Prairie Meadows Conference Center in Altoona Iowa.  The cost is $99, which includes lunch and materials.