Jon Zimring

For employers who are new to affirmative action obligations, as well as for established government contractors and/or subcontractors, Jon regularly guides clients in designing, implementing, and enhancing affirmative action programs to demonstrate compliance with the requirements of Executive Order 11246, Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and Section 4212 of VEVRA. Jon also works actively on a privileged basis on providing advice and counsel to clients grappling with difficult applicant to hire, selection decision, and pay equity challenges. He actively defends government contracting clients facing OFCCP compliance reviews and other enforcement efforts, while guiding government contractors, both while under and not under audit, in the correct use of affirmative action plans as a management tool to enhance equal employment opportunity, focused always on achieving the collateral benefits of regulatory compliance and diminution in administrative charges. 

• Represented federal contractor facing OFCCP notice of violations involving asserted seven-figure liability for minority adverse impact from unvalidated tests. Negotiated OFCCP to resolution with no ongoing hiring obligations.
• Represented federal contractor facing substantial pay equity challenges, on a privileged basis, to conduct multiple cohort analyses to explain pay disparities and to assess and recommend systemic and recordkeeping improvements to rectify and avoid ongoing pay equity issues.
• Represented federal contractor in compliance review showing substantial female and minority hiring shortfalls and adverse impact in minority terminations. Brought OFCCP administrative closure of compliance review.
• Engaged part-way through OFCCP compliance review where federal contractor had submitted compensation data to OFCCP showing significant gender-based compensation disparities. Brought OFCCP administrative closure of compliance review.°
• Counseled federal contractor in order to avoid continued multi-establishment targeting by OFCCP. Guided client through critical self-analysis and self-audit of affirmative action program to develop more effective monitoring and reporting systems to satisfy OFCCP enforcement initiatives.°
• Represented federal contractor facing OFCCP notice of violations involving gender-based adverse impact in hiring. Used Title VII damages and mitigation principles and related legal arguments to negotiate OFCCP down to appropriate, low-figure resolution.°
• Counsel to multiple new federal contractors in developing affirmative action programs to achieve voluntary compliance with changing OFCCP requirements, building human resources systems to support such programs, and training human resources personnel and managers to facilitate both the annual generation of affirmative action plans and the maintenance of a successful overall affirmative action program at a predictable and manageable yearly cost.°

For employers who have unions, Jon works closely with clients on their labor relations, including collective bargaining negotiations, labor disputes, and resolution of grievances. He also represents clients with and without unionized workforces before the National Labor Relations Board in connection with representation cases and unfair labor practice charges. Finally, Jon counsels employers on best practices for the management of their unionized workforces.

• Represents employers in collective bargaining negotiations for successive union agreements, working with management to achieve operational objectives in negotiations while keeping costs consistent with business needs.
• Represents employers in defense of unfair labor practice charges alleging 8(a)(1) and 8(a)(5) violations both in connection with union organizing campaigns and during collective bargaining negotiations.
• Acts as counsel to engineering, health care, and construction employers in ERISA audit and collection disputes with union pension and health and welfare funds, defending funds' litigation and/or negotiating resolutions of such matters.
• Represented a construction industry employer in connection with IRS and Department of Labor investigations arising out of claims by a health and welfare and pension fund of illegal subcontracting to evade ERISA obligations.°
• Represented a nationwide retailer relating to union misconduct during an election campaign petitioning the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn a decision of the NLRB.°
• Acts as counsel to employers in the conduct of counter-organizing campaigns and representation cases before the NLRB, thwarting union efforts to organize and defending unfair labor practice charges arising from the campaigns.
• Trains clients’ union department heads and managers on administration of grievance procedures and establishment of “just cause” to avoid/improve defense of arbitrations.
• Represents employers evaluating the acquisition of union workforces, negotiating new collective bargaining agreements, and navigating successorship issues.

For employers in numerous industries, Jon regularly provides advice and counsel to employers facing, among other difficult challenges: sexual and other harassment or discrimination complaints; mental health workplace violence and ADA accommodations issues; wage and hour issues; independent contractor/employee misclassification; payment system problems; and the interplay among the ADA, FMLA, and workers' compensation laws. He regularly provides training on these topics to employer audiences ranging from highest level officers and boards of directors to entry level rank and file.

• Designs and conducts trainings (including diversity, harassment, ADA and FMLA, USERRA, wage and hour, hiring, performance review and discipline and discharge, among others) for upper- and mid-level management for employers ranging from nationwide Fortune 500 companies to small employers operating at a single site.
• Acts as counsel to employers to investigate and resolve claimed harassment of employees by high-level executives, supervisors and coworkers, residents, clients, and customers. Conducts sexual, racial, religious, and national origin harassment investigations, prepares or counsels employers on the preparation of investigation reports, and counsels on both specific and systemic measures to minimize the risk of lawsuits or liability.
• Counsels employers with mentally disabled employees exhibiting potentially threatening behavior through all associated issues, simultaneously protecting the workplace and working through the ADA’s interactive process to neutralize ADA litigation threats.
• Counsels employers facing substantial productivity and operational challenges arising from rampant absenteeism and unpredictable intermittent leave usage to improve manager practices, procedures, and HR functions to more effectively manage and diminish operational disruptions from employee leave and disability issues and their effect on the workplace while still adhering to legal and regulatory requirements.
• Designs, implements and works closely with employers to improve preventive human resources systems, including development of new employee-facing policies and HR/supervisor manuals, reworking of hiring and compensation practices, development and redevelopment of job descriptions, performance review systems and disciplinary procedures, and training of managers on all of the above, ending or substantially diminishing cycles of repeated grievances, administrative charges, and/or employment litigation against the employers.

°The above representations were handled by Mr. Zimring prior to his joining Greenberg Traurig, LLP.

• Listed, Leading Lawyers Network, 2007-2024
• Listed, The Chicago Daily Law Bulletin and The Chicago Lawyer, "40 Under 40," 2006

• Member, DirectEmployers Compliance Advisory Board