Matthew T. Wakefield

Matt regularly provides counsel to employers concerning all areas of employment and labor law, including human resources decisions, union organizing, employee communications, employment and labor policies, wage and hour challenges, employee investigations, and compliance with state and federal employment and labor laws. Matt has successfully negotiated collective bargaining agreements for employers throughout the United States and its territories. He has successfully represented employers in over 80% of the National Labor Relations Board regions, as well as before the Board itself.

Experience

Matt has a wealth of experience navigating clients through all forms of difficult labor and employment environments, including:

•Negotiating collective bargaining agreements;
•Boycotts, corporate campaigns, media and political pressure, strikes, and other economic weapons or organized labor;
•Arbitration of union grievances concerning employee discipline/discharges and contract interpretation disputes;
•Discrimination and retaliation charges;
•Labor and employment issues in asset and stock purchases/sales, including withdrawal liability and ERISA section 4204 transactions;
•Defending unfair labor practice charges;
•Union representation petitions and organizing campaigns;
•Wage and hour claims; and
•Layoffs, restructurings, employee terminations, and other sensitive human resources matters.

Publications

•California Wage and Hour Law and Litigation, Payment of Wages, Regular Rate and Overtime - California Continuing Education of the Bar (CEB)(Annually updated book)
•Advising California Employers and Employees, Wage and Hour Laws - California Continuing Education of the Bar (CEB) (Annually updated book)
•Applying the Federal Labor-Management Law - Valley Lawyer Magazine (SFVBA) 2012
•Labor Insignia Battle Decided in San Diego - Hotel & Motel Management 2007
•Employers Must Handle Issues Before Unions Do - Hotel & Motel Management, 2006
•Flip-Flop on Weingarten Rights for Non-Union Employees - Los Angeles Daily Journal 2004

Professional Activities & Recognition

Speaking Engagements

•What Every Non-Labor Lawyer Needs to Know About Labor Law, Mecklenburg County Bar Annual Employment Law CLE Program (2018)
•The National Labor Relations Board: Preemption, Employer Rules, and Changes under the New Administration, Los Angeles County Bar Association 37th Annual Labor & Employment Law Symposium (2017)
•The National Labor Relations Board: A New Agenda for Union and Non-Union Workplaces, Beverly Hills Bar Association Labor and Employment Law Section (2013)
•Collective Bargaining Challenges, Hospitality Asset Managers Association (HAMA) Conference, Denver, Colorado (2010)
•Labor-Management Strategies in the Economic Crisis: Allies or Adversaries in Responding to Plant Closings, RIFs, and Layoffs, OC LERA Dinner Meeting (2008)
•A Full Board and a New General Counsel at the NLRB: A Future Remarkable or Predictable? 24th Annual Labor and Employment Law Conference (2006)
•Strikes and Labor Disputes in the Early 21st Century, LA County Bar Association Labor and Employment Law Section Meeting (2005)
•Employee Investigations, Discipline, and Terminations, Employment Law From A to Z in California (2005)

Honors

•Southern California Rising Star, Super Lawyers