Areas Of Emphasis

Employment and Labor Litigation

Eric has represented public and private sector clients in a variety of proceedings at the state and federal level, including matters such as:

• Defending both state and federal lawsuits alleging violations of fair employment practices statutes, including sexual discrimination and harassment, racial discrimination and harassment, disability discrimination, age discrimination and other civil rights claims;
  
  
• Defending employers against FMLA, FLSA and alleged state and federal statutory violations;
  
  
• Defending state common law wrongful discharge, defamation, invasion of privacy and various tort-based lawsuits;
  
  
• Representing employers in both the defense and prosecution of contract-based claims;
  
  
• Representing employers before the EEOC and state equal employment agencies when charges of discrimination have been filed;
  
  
• Defending employers in Department of Labor investigations of alleged wage and hour violations;

• Representing employers in both the defense and prosecution of non-compete, non-solicit and confidentiality agreements, as well as enforcement actions to protect employers' trade secrets;
  
  
• Arbitrating numerous grievances arising under collective bargaining agreements ranging from disciplinary issues to complex contract interpretation issues;

• Pursuing injunctive relief against mass picketing, violence, or illegal strikes;
  
  
• Representing employers who have been the targets of illegal or unfair labor practices by unions including unlawful secondary boycotts;
  
  
• Defending employers against unfair labor practice charges filed by unions with the NLRB and SERB; and
  

• Representing employers before the National Labor Relations Board with respect to various union election issues, including the appropriate scope of bargaining units and election objections.

Eric is a frequent lecturer and trainer on issues relating to workplace professionalism, such as harassment and discrimination, employee privacy, technology in the workplace and how to protect confidential company information, including trade secrets and employee information.

Labor Relations and Collective Bargaining

Eric has substantial experience negotiating collective bargaining agreements, guiding clients through ongoing labor relations issues and assisting clients in the interpretation and enforcement of collective bargaining agreements for this facet of his practice. Eric's experience includes:

• Acting as lead negotiator and management counsel in collective bargaining with a variety of labor organizations, including the Ohio Education Association (OEA), Ohio Association of Professional School Employees (OAPSE) and the United Auto Workers (UAW);
  
  
• Serving as management counsel for a large public employer in negotiations with the Teamsters, including representing the employer through the fact-finding and state mediation stages;
  
  
• Advising employers involved in collective bargaining negotiations, whether at the table or behind the scenes, on bargaining strategies, advantageous contract language and the avoidance of unfair labor practice charges;
  
  
• Advising clients with respect to contract interpretation issues arising under collective bargaining agreements;
  
  
• Advising non-union clients with respect to union avoidance tactics; and
  
  
• Assisting employers in union organizing campaigns and in developing and implementing effective campaign strategies.

Education Law

As the Chair of the Education Group, in addition to representing boards of education in litigation matters and labor relations, Eric has provided regular advice and counsel to school law clients in the following areas:

• Board policy formulation, implementation and administration;
  
  
• Contract advice, guidance and drafting, including but not limited to employment contracts and third-party agreements;
  
  
• Employment and personnel issues, including hiring, firing, evaluation and corrective action counseling;
  
  
• Collective bargaining with teaching and non-teaching personnel, along with assisting clients to interpret, apply and administer the collective bargaining agreements;
  
  
• Defending the interests of boards of education in arbitration proceedings, including those based on contract interpretation and employee discipline;
  
  
• Public records and the sunshine law, along with privacy concerns of employees and students;
  
  
• Student legal issues, including challenges to Board policies, discipline and First Amendment issues; and
  
  
• Technology in education, including its proper use and assisting boards in addressing student web sites that harm the educational process.

Eric is a frequent speaker on various issues affecting Ohio schools at events sponsored by the Ohio School Boards Association, Buckeye Association of School Administrators, Ohio Association of School Business Officials and eTech Ohio. Likewise, Eric has written numerous articles on school law issues in various publications.

Presentations

• "Spring School Law Seminar," Holiday Inn Cleveland West, April 14, 2010.

• "Spring School Law Seminar," Quail Hollow, April 13, 2010.

• "Developing Issues in Wage-Hour Law: Preparing Employers for the Increased Governmental Enforcement Initiatives," ADP Seminar, Embassy Suites Hotel, April 7, 2010.

• "Employment Law Update: What You Need to Know for 2010," Marriott, Cleveland East, January 19, 2010.

• "Keeping Your Workforce Union-Free Under the Threat of the Employee Free Choice Act ("EFCA")," Corporate College, April 15, 2009.

• "Public Labor and Employment Law: What's New and What's Coming," Ohio Municipal Attorneys Association, March 13, 2009.

• "Frequently Asked Questions: School Law", Quail Hollow Resort, February 25, 2009.

• "Change is Coming! How Will Employment Laws Be Affected" in Cleveland, Ohio. The event was sponsored by the National Business Institute (NBI), January 7, 2009.

• "Employment Laws Made Simple," National Business Institute, December 10, 2008.

• Employment & Labor Seminar on "Managing Employee Leaves of Absence", Marriott Cleveland East, September 23, 2008.

• "Responding to Frequently Asked Questions in Employment Law", Marriott, Cleveland East, June 17, 2008.

• "Employment Laws Made Simple; Ensure compliance with employment law procedures and practices!", National Business Institute Seminar, December 11, 2007.

• Ohio School Board Association's Capital Conference; "Can You Hear and See Me Now? Podcasting in Education" - November 2006.

Community Involvement

In addition to serving as pro bono legal counsel to a number of non-profit entities, Eric serves as a Member of the Board of Directors for Hershey Montessori School. Eric is also active in the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. In 2004, City Year awarded Eric the Idealism in Action Award in recognition of his community service efforts in the Greater Cleveland area.

Professional & Community Associations

• Cleveland Employment Law Inns of Court
• Ohio Council of School Board Attorneys
• National Council of School Attorneys

Education

Duke University, J.D., 2000
Denison University, B.A., 1997 (summa cum laude)

Licensed to Practice

• All Ohio courts
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
• U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio

Awards & Recognitions In the November 30, 2009 issue of Crain’s Cleveland Business, Eric Johnson was named to the publication’s prestigious “Forty under 40” list. In this annual listing, Crain’s honored forty of Greater Cleveland’s young professionals, from a variety of fields and industries, who have taken an active role in the local business community and demonstrated leadership and vision in helping to revitalize the region’s economy. In the June 2009 issue of Inside Business magazine, Eric J. Johnson was featured in the special section, "High Bars," which highlighted fifteen of Northeast Ohio's leading young lawyers. Eric was named in the 2009 issue of Ohio Super Lawyers - Rising Stars Edition, a listing which honors those individuals, as chosen by their peers, who are considered to be among the top up-and-coming lawyers either 40 years old or younger, or who have been practicing law for 10 years or less.

Articles by Eric J. Johnson February 2009 –Workforce Management Online; Dusting off the Employee Handbook December 2008 – Ohio State Bar Association: "Employers Must Pay Attention to Expanded Reach of Americans with Disabilities Act." March 2007 – Ohio Career and Technical Administrators, "Don't Get ‘Blogged' Down with the Legal Implications of Posting to the Internet" August 2006 – Client Briefing on Employment Law: New law requires Ohio entities to respond to data security breaches or face significant penalties. November 2005 - S.B.O. Quarterly; "House Bill 66's New Reductions in Force Provisions: How Will They Affect Your District?" Spring 2004 – Crain's Cleveland Business, "Supreme Court Decision Boosts Power of Noncompete Pacts"

Areas of Practice

Employment and Labor Litigation
Labor Relations and Collective Bargaining
Education Law

Litigation Services