Energy

Businesses in the energy industry are among the most heavily regulated in the U.S., facing state, federal, and local compliance challenges involving workplace safety, employee rights, and labor laws, among many other areas. Every day you must maintain healthy and safe work environments, make sound personnel decisions and promote efficiency while dealing with rapidly shifting economic dynamics, an ever-present threat of litigation, and issues of reputational risk. You need attorneys who know the industry inside and out to help overcome the complex employment related legal and business hurdles you face.

Fisher Phillips’ Energy practice has deep roots and experience representing clients in every phase of the industry including exploration, extraction, transportation, production, processing and transmission. With experience gleaned from advising large coal companies since the late 1970s through counseling emerging leaders in today’s renewable sector, our lawyers are deeply familiar with the intricate workplace challenges you face in every facet of your organization.

Located across the U.S., our clients include Fortune 500 diversified energy companies and leaders in the oil and gas, mining, power generation, public utility, alternative and renewable energy, water, components manufacturing, services, and equipment and infrastructure subsectors.

As part of a preeminent, full-service labor and employment firm, attorneys in Fisher Phillips’ Energy Industry Team help clients nationwide with issues including:

• Workplace Health and Safety – we know the critical importance of avoiding accidents, so we’ll work with you up front to prevent unsafe conditions and tenaciously defend against any claims, investigations and citations that arise, including under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH) and applicable state standards.
• Advice and Counsel – our lawyers can help you manage all facets of your workforce. We’ll assist in drafting employment agreements, handbooks and policies; meet your staffing needs (including hiring practices, working with contractors and third-party personnel agencies, disciplinary matters, reductions in force, furloughs and terminations); and help ensure regulatory compliance. Our team also advises on all manner of corporate governance, restrictive covenants, and employee benefits matters (including plans and issues involving ERISA, severance, and workers’ compensation).
• Employment Litigation – our attorneys routinely defend energy industry clients in court, in arbitrations and before administrative agencies against claims involving employment discrimination (including affirmative action and OFCCP matters), harassment, retaliation, improper termination, wage and hour violations, whistleblowers, and non-compete agreements. We have defended against numerous class actions in venues across the country.
• Labor Relations – advising and representing both unionized and non-unionized employers in the energy industry, members of our team help businesses create strategic plans to promote positive labor relations, maintain union-free status, effectively respond to signs of worker discontent and union organizing campaigns, conduct collective bargaining and union negotiations, and vigorously defend against unfair labor practice charges before all regions of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

We also assist clients in conducting internal investigations, maintaining data security, and in immigration matters that enable them to access the skilled employees they need to remain competitive.