E. MichaelRossman (Mike)

Partner

Chicago + 1.312.269.4305

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Mike Rossman advances the interests of employers throughout the country in traditional labor matters and complex employment litigation. He focuses on collective bargaining, litigation, arbitration, strikes and picketing disputes, corporate campaigns, and representation proceedings arising under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). In addition, Mike has defended multiple companies in class actions and other complex, multiparty litigation involving claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA), Title VII (discrimination), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), and numerous state laws. He has extensive experience in the defense of clients facing employment class actions across multiple jurisdictions, as well as clients facing joint employer or single employer claims in civil and agency proceedings. He counsels clients across a broad spectrum of employment law and litigation-avoidance topics.

Mike's practice spans employers in the automotive, health care, hospitality, manufacturing, pharmaceutical, restaurant, retail, technology, and telecommunications industries. Clients with whom he has worked include Dick's Sporting Goods, General Electric, IBM, Kraft Heinz Company, McDonald's, Verizon Communications, and Verizon Wireless.

Mike has filed multiple amicus briefs on behalf of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other business organizations in Supreme Court and appellate court cases raising high-profile issues impacting the business community. He has written and spoken on a variety of topics, including wage and hour issues, labor issues, management techniques, and litigation avoidance.

Experience

  • Fortune 20 company obtains vacatur of $70 million arbitration awardJones Day wins vacatur of a $70+ million arbitration award that purported to bar our client, a Fortune 20 company, from allowing customers to self-install certain equipment in their own homes, and instead required that union employees perform all installations regardless of whether the customer wanted that or not.
  • McDonald’s successfully resolves groundbreaking NLRB litigationJones Day successfully represented McDonald's USA, LLC and McDonald's Restaurants of Illinois, Inc., in the largest consolidated National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) litigation matter ever and one of the most important labor cases in the United States today.
  • McDonald's victorious at trial against state-wide California class action wage and hour PAGA claimsJones Day prevailed in gutting the remaining part of a state-wide class and representative action under the California Labor Code Private Attorneys General Act filed against McDonald’s Corporation.
  • GE wins Sixth Circuit appeal defeating class action surrounding retiree benefitsJones Day obtained a victory on behalf of General Electric Company ("GE") in the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, which affirmed a complete dismissal of a nationwide putative class action concerning GE's changes to post-retirement medical benefits for union retirees.
  • Amici curiae assist in Supreme Court rejection of FLSA exemptions interpretationJones Day represented the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, The National Federation of Independent Business, and Retail Litigation Center as amici curiae in connection with a brief in support of the employer’s position in Encino Motor Cars LLC v. Navarro, No. 16-1362 (U.S.).
  • White Castle wins summary judgment and defeats class certification in FLSA caseJones Day successfully defeated Rule 23 class certification and won summary judgment for client White Castle System, Inc. on the individual Plaintiffs' claims in this case under the Fair Labor Standards Act, Illinois Minimum Wage Law, Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act, and at common law.
  • Amici U.S. Chamber of Commerce, American Trucking Association, and National Association of Manufacturers set out winning position in NLRB misclassification caseAdopting positions set out in an amicus brief that Jones Day drafted and filed on behalf of U.S. Chamber of Commerce, American Trucking Association, and National Association of Manufacturers, the D.C. Circuit overturned a National Labor Relations Board determination that a group of delivery drivers were statutory employees subject to its jurisdiction, rather than independent contractors who were not. 
  • McDonald’s defeats attempt to expand class actionOn February 15, 2017, Jones Day and client McDonald’s Corporation successfully blocked plaintiffs’ attempt to certify three new theories of liability in a statewide wage and hour class action.
  • McDonald’s defeats class certification and PAGA claims in statewide California class action wage and hour caseIn a series of wins, Jones Day client McDonald’s Corporation defeated class action and PAGA claims brought against the company in a California-wide wage and hour lawsuit.
  • U.S. Chamber of Commerce files amicus brief in FLSA actionJones Day assisted the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in drafting and filing an amicus brief in the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York supporting the position of defendant/appellee black car companies that the drivers for such companies are properly classified as independent contractors rather than employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act.
  • City of Detroit's chapter 9 plan of adjustment confirmedJones Day served as lead restructuring counsel to the City of Detroit in connection with its chapter 9 bankruptcy case filed in July 2013 and its ongoing restructuring efforts.
  • Wolters Kluwer Health acquires medical terminology management market leader Health LanguageJones Day advised Wolters Kluwer Health in its acquisition of Health Language, Inc., a leader in medical terminology management solutions.
  • IBM wins preemptive motion to deny class certification of California wage claimsOn behalf of International Business Machines Corporation, Jones Day preemptively defeated class certification of California-law wage claims.
  • AstraZeneca obtains dismissal in class action alleging misclassificationJones Day earned a quick victory for AstraZeneca in Shatto v. AstraZeneca, in which Plaintiff alleged that he and other pharmaceutical sales representatives nationwide were misclassified as exempt from the FLSA's overtime pay requirements.
  • Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan wins 6th Circuit appeal in important ERISA fiduciary breach caseOn December 8, 2010, the U.S. Court of Appeals For the Sixth Circuit ruled in favor of Jones Day's client Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan in an important case involving the scope of ERISA's fiduciary conduct rules -- DeLuca v. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan.
  • McDonald's successfully defeats class certification in putative state-wide wage and hour actionJones Day successfully represented McDonald's in a class-action lawsuit filed by former McDonald's employees, asserting claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Missouri Minimum Wage Law, and common law theories of unjust enrichment, quantum meruit, and breach of implied contract.
  • IBM obtains summary judgment as to claims of named plaintiff seeking to represent statewide class of California IT workers in wage-hour class actionOn behalf of International Business Machines Corporation, Jones Day obtained summary judgment as to the claims of the named plaintiff seeking to represent a statewide class of California IT workers in a wage-hour class action.
  • First American Title Insurance successfully appeals majority of adverse jury verdict in largest damages award given in economic injury case in Ohio historyJones Day is counsel for First American Title Insurance Company and its executive, James Magnuson, as appellate and retrial counsel after an adverse jury verdict in the amount of $43.2 million.
  • Continental Tire obtains preliminary approval in settlement in ERISA class actionJones Day represented Continental Tire North America in a class action under ERISA and Sec. 301 of the Labor-Management Relations Act filed by retirees and the United Steelworkers of America challenging Continental's modification of its retiree medical plan for retirees at its unionized plants.
  • California Employment Law Council files 9th Circuit amicus brief involving the exempt status of pharmaceutical sales representativesJones Day assisted in representing the California Employment Law Council (CELC) and Employers Group as amicus in a wage and hour lawsuit involving the exempt status of pharmaceutical sales representatives.
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    September 2022 Commentary

    The Back-and-Forth Continues: NLRB Once Again Seeks to Broaden Its Joint-Employer Standard

    August 2021 Commentary

    New Ohio Law Modifies the Legal Requirements for State Employment Discrimination Claims

    May 2021 Commentary

    Illinois Restricts Employers From Using Conviction Records in Making Employment Decisions

    May 2021 Commentary

    Illinois Employers Face Significant New Requirements, Penalties Under Equal Pay Act, Business Corporation Act Amendments

    September 2020 Alert

    Adjusting to New Economic Realities: Department of Labor Proposes Worker Classification Test

    September 2020 Commentary

    New York Federal Court Partially Invalidates U.S. Department of Labor’s Joint Employer Regulation

    May 2020 White Paper

    Avoiding Pandemic-Related Employment Litigation and Disputes

    October 2018 Commentary

    Department of Labor Extends PAID Program for Resolving Employer FLSA Violations

    December 2016 Commentary

    Second Circuit Overturns NLRB Unit Determination and Admonishes NLRB for Misapplying Specialty Healthcare Standard

    June 2016 Commentary

    Supreme Court Rules that Chevron Deference Is Not Owed to Unexplained Agency Positions
    View All

    Additional Publications

    • September 2016
      The NLRB's Persistent Quest to Regulate Your Workplace, 2016 Jones Day Labor & Employment Law Discussion Group
    • September 2016
      The Impact of the DOL's New White Collar Regulations: Do You Need to Reclassify Four Million Employees?, 2016 Jones Day Labor & Employment Law Discussion Group
    • September 2016
      Creative Strategies For Protecting Your Confidential Information and Employee Data: Trade Secret, Illinois Non-Compete Agreements, and Biometrics, 2016 Jones Day Labor & Employment Law Discussion Group
    • Forthcoming
      Is 'Ten Days' Really Ten Days?--The National Labor Relations Act's Strike Notice Requirement in the Healthcare Industry, Journal of Health Law
    • Forthcoming
      Litigating The Certification Issue In FLSA Collective Actions and State-Law Wage-And-Hour Class Actions, New York University 57th Annual Conference on Labor
    • April 16, 2004
      Non-Union Employers Must Follow NLRB Regulations, Business First
    • January/February 2000
      Access Issues Under the National Labor Relations Act: Girl Scouts, Unions, and Others? HR Advisor

    Additional Speaking Engagements

    • December 8, 2015
      The NLRB's Agenda Leading Up To The 2016 Elections
    • December 19, 2012
      Social Media: The NLRB's Focus on the Lawfulness of Employer Social Media Policies in Both Union and Nonunion Settings
    • December 13, 2012
      What to Expect From the NLRB During President Obama's Second Term: Impact on Both Union and Non-Union Workplaces
    • May 22, 2012
      2012 Speaker Series
      Internal Wage-and-Hours Compliance Audits: Reap the Benefits Before It's Too Late
    • May 10, 2012
      2012 Hospitality Labor & Employment Discussion Group
    • April 14, 2011
      2011 Annual Hospitality Labor & Employment Discussion Group
    • December 9, 2010
      Hot Topics In Wage and Hour Litigation, Jones Day CLE University
    • April 28, 2007
      Complex Litigation: Working with Expert

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