Arkansas Employment Law Attorneys

Helping Businesses Navigate Employment Matters

The Law Group of Northwest Arkansas PLLC helps businesses with all types of employment matters, including:

• Employee Policies and Handbooks
• Drafting Employment Contracts, including Non-Compete and Non-Solicit Contracts
• Employment Contract Enforcement
• Employment Discrimination Claims
• Sexual Harassment Claims
• Retaliation Claims
• Wrongful Termination Claims
• Unemployment Claims
• Fair Labor Standards Act Claims
• Workers’ Compensation Defense

Employee Policies and Contracts

Avoiding accusations, administrative complaints, and lawsuits start with understanding the law. By consulting an employment attorney, you can learn more about your duties and your workers’ responsibilities under relevant state and federal laws. A clear understanding of the law then informs your workplace policies and employee handbook.

We are here to help employers of all sizes write appropriate policies and manuals that outline employer and employee responsibilities, performance documentation procedures, complaint procedures, and the consequences for improper or unlawful behavior.

We help write businesses’ first employee manuals or review and upgrade handbooks that are out of date concerning the law, changes in the workplace environment, or changes in the workplace culture and values. Employment policies and manuals should be updated when old approaches no longer make sense or have failed to serve the business well.

Discrimination Claims

All employers are afraid of allegations of discrimination in the workplace. No matter your business’ size, you must try to understand and fight conscious discrimination and implicit bias in your recruitment, hiring, and employment processes. You also must be ready to take workers’ claims seriously when they come up.

The Law Group of Northwest Arkansas PLLC is here to help you prevent discrimination claims and fight any wrongful claims against the business. We can help you improve your recruitment, hiring, and employment practices to fight discrimination in all its forms. We also have experience investigating possible discrimination. If we find evidence of discrimination, we can help your business determine the best way to move forward, including whether any employees should be disciplined, dismissed, receive training, or receive an appropriate settlement for their injuries.

Sexual Harassment Claims

Sexual harassment is illegal under both federal and Arkansas law. Unfortunately, it happens all too often, including to remote workers. We can work with your business to create a comprehensive policy prohibiting unlawful behavior, laying out a complaint and investigation process, and providing clear consequences.

Our firm also can help you investigate claims of sexual harassment, which can include unwelcome comments, gestures, touching, photos, videos, and more. We will get to the bottom of these allegations and figure out the best way to move forward, whether they are true or not.

Retaliation and Wrongful Termination Claims

The law prohibits employers from retaliating against workers who come forward about discrimination or sexual harassment. At The Law Group of Northwest Arkansas PLLC, we help businesses investigate allegations of retaliation by an executive or manager, including demotions, reassignments, pay reductions, disciplinary actions, or firings.

Wrongful termination claims can be separate from any allegations of retaliation. Most positions are at-will employment, which gives you broad discretion in choosing to let someone go. But if there is a contract, it is vital to have an experienced employment attorney review the termination in light of the agreement. Our team is here to defend your business against wrongful termination claims.

Unemployment Claims

If you encounter an invalid unemployment claim, talk with us about how to approach the situation. We will help you respond to notice of an unemployment insurance claim or appeal an agency determination in the ex-employees favor. It is essential to respond to any documents you receive promptly. There are specific deadlines we will help you meet.

Federal Claims

Numerous federal laws protect workers against various forms of discrimination:

• Title VII of the Civil Rights Act: Protects workers from discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, or sex.
• The Pregnancy Discrimination Act: Protects workers from discrimination based on pregnancy, childbirth, or a medical condition related to pregnancy or childbirth.
• The Age Discrimination in Employment Act: Protects workers 40 years and older from discrimination based on their age.
• Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act: Protects workers who are disabled and require reasonable accommodations to perform their work.
• The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act: Protects workers from discrimination based on their genetic information.
• The Equal Pay Act: Protects women from being paid less than men for equal work.

An employee who believes their employer violated a federal employment law can file a claim with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Once they file a complaint, the EEOC notifies the organization and begins an investigation.

We are here to represent you during the EEOC complaint process. We can help you find and present evidence that you did not violate federal law. We also can represent you through mediation and seek a voluntary settlement with the worker.

Fair Labor Standards Act Defense

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) establishes minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping, and youth employment standards affecting employers and employees in the private and public sectors. Often employers and employees do not have a comprehensive understanding of this law, especially in terms of overtime calculation and claims. At The Law Group of Northwest Arkansas PLLC, we help businesses confirm compliance with FLSA and defend employee FLSA claims if they should arise.

Workers’ Compensation Defense

State law may require you to provide workers’ compensation insurance for your employees. This insurance helps workers hurt while on the job by covering medical care and some lost wages. But not all claims made against workers’ comp are valid. If you believe an employee was injured off the clock or intentionally or recklessly caused their injuries, talk with us about fighting the claim. Our attorneys provide workers’ comp defense services in Arkansas and Missouri.