--- title: Labor and Employment Counseling and Compliance date: 2023-06-12T15:36:00-04:00 author: Import Bot canonical_url: "https://www.kelleydrye.com/practices/labor-and-employment-counseling-and-compliance" section: Services --- # Labor and Employment Counseling and Compliance Winning litigation is a good thing, but avoiding litigation is better. Kelley Drye marries legal knowledge with real-world pragmatism to offer strategic counseling and comprehensive representation on a full spectrum of workplace issues. ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Hero-Objects/business_blocks.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=1880&q=80&w=1880&s=bc26d279e2e4f4db66c58b9f5577f5ae) - About - Team - Honors - Events “The legal advice is always based on research and sound, practical business principles. The team is always responsive, communicative about progress, and never misses a deadline.” \- Client feedback, *Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business* ### Advice and Counsel The costs of litigation go well beyond its expense and distraction to the reputational and public-relations damage that lawsuits often cause. Our decades of experience and up-to-the-minute understanding of evolving laws allows us to offer pragmatic, cost-effective, and solutions-oriented advice that helps you manage risks and avoid disputes before they start. We keep our clients’ business and operational goals front and center and provide bespoke answers and options, not academic legal analysis. We handle: - Compliance with the entire range of federal, state, and local employment laws - Recruitment, compensation, benefits, and equal pay/pay equity compliance - State and federal wage and hour laws, including wage and hour litigation - Performance management, discipline, and termination - Reductions in-force and redundancies - Employment contracts, non-compete agreements, and restrictive covenants - Workplace and human resources policies - Harassment and hostile workplace training - Preparation of affirmative action plans ### Global Human Resources Law We understand the challenges of an international workforce and bring a distinctly cross-border perspective to the many multinational companies we serve. Our lawyers lead international legal and HR teams in cross-border transactions and labor issues requiring the balancing of legal requirements in the EU, Asia, and the Americas. We work with a global network of trusted counsel to address our clients’ global employment law challenges wherever they arise. We handle: - Employment regulations - Employment agreements - Compensation and benefits - Global mobility - Dismissal-related issues - Relocations, collective redundancies, and plant closures ### Compliance Audits and Internal Investigations We help employers identify and effectively manage the risks of internal complaints, including whistleblower complaints, in matters that both stay under the radar and end up making headlines. We have particular experience in crisis management (including public relations) and helping employers address issues head-on while minimizing disruption in the workplace. We handle: - Internal investigations related to allegations of code of conduct violations including sexual harassment and pay equity - Developing and updating of codes of conduct, employee reporting mechanisms (whistleblower hotlines), and employee awareness - Customizing related training programs - Defending whistleblower claims in federal and state courts [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Bio-Photos-1200x1200/Konkel_Mark_2025.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=956&q=80&w=956&s=5fd06cbe347c689ae09c1315ff7b5541) ![](/static/img/team-card-bg/square_team_listing_1.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/mark-a-konkel) ### [Mark A. Konkel](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/mark-a-konkel) Partner [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Bio-Photos-1200x1200/Hoey_Barbara.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=956&q=80&w=956&s=075f1ac7045111dd804f887b989c95d6) ![](/static/img/team-card-bg/square_team_listing_2.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/barbara-e-hoey) ### [Barbara E. Hoey](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/barbara-e-hoey) Partner [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Bio-Photos-1200x1200/Katz_Clifford.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=956&q=80&w=956&s=f13b7580066d7414df0594290ff2e188) ![](/static/img/team-card-bg/square_team_listing_3.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/clifford-katz) ### [Clifford Katz](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/clifford-katz) Partner [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Bio-Photos-1200x1200/Lovinger__Blythe_slves.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=956&q=80&w=956&s=31f23afe54d97bf2d5e72441a1d46915) ![](/static/img/team-card-bg/square_team_listing_4.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/blythe-e-lovinger) ### [Blythe E. Lovinger](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/blythe-e-lovinger) Partner [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Bio-Photos-1200x1200/Frimmel_Alison.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=956&q=80&w=956&s=d57d81e8877df4de9107930b66936942) ![](/static/img/team-card-bg/square_team_listing_5.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/alison-frimmel) ### [Alison Frimmel](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/alison-frimmel) Special Counsel [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Bio-Photos-1200x1200/Juang_Judy5.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=956&q=80&w=956&s=7e6cd6409022066ea0254c08ba4a8b30) ![](/static/img/team-card-bg/square_team_listing_6.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/judy-juang) ### [Judy Juang](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/judy-juang) Special Counsel [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Bio-Photos-1200x1200/Woodley_Brenna.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=956&q=80&w=956&s=01e751e01588acadfdbaa2adff238d89) ![](/static/img/team-card-bg/square_team_listing_7.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/brenna-m-woodley) ### [Brenna M. Woodley](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/brenna-m-woodley) Special Counsel [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Bio-Photos-1200x1200/Seidenberg_Alex_BW_Silloutte_1200x1200_Retouch_052924.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=956&q=80&w=956&s=85c832cad3905fcda522d48053479e83) ![](/static/img/team-card-bg/square_team_listing_8.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/alex-j-seidenberg) ### [Alex J. Seidenberg](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/alex-j-seidenberg) Senior Associate [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Bio-Photos-1200x1200/Williams_Chaiv5.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=956&q=80&w=956&s=8397389d87ef4ec684de1d89182d00eb) ![](/static/img/team-card-bg/square_team_listing_9.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/chai-williams) ### [Chai Williams](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/chai-williams) Senior Associate [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Bio-Photos-1200x1200/Bickford_Pelatiah2.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=956&q=80&w=956&s=be70ab5e868df5f67d9c4f6d9e563dc7) ![](/static/img/team-card-bg/square_team_listing_10.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/pelly-bickford) ### [Pelatiah (Pelly) Bickford](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/pelly-bickford) Associate [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Bio-Photos-1200x1200/Cihlar_Zachary2025.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=956&q=80&w=956&s=6b51fbde1b86d19b74dcfd3cd15f2846) ![](/static/img/team-card-bg/square_team_listing_11.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/zach-cihlar) ### [Zach Cihlar](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/zach-cihlar) Associate [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Bio-Photos-1200x1200/Gilman_Ben.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=956&q=80&w=956&s=06bda20d0860988c28246554f7334770) ![](/static/img/team-card-bg/square_team_listing_1.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/benjamin-gilman) ### [Benjamin Gilman](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/benjamin-gilman) Associate [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Bio-Photos-1200x1200/Mercado_ChristianV2.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=956&q=80&w=956&s=77a8481396a876771b82c13c189afe97) ![](/static/img/team-card-bg/square_team_listing_2.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/christian-m-mercado) ### [Christian M. Mercado](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/christian-m-mercado) Associate Honors [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Listing-Images/500-award.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=750&q=80&w=1125&s=8aafcc4c8cfedc64ea654ccb3fd4623e) ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Listing-rectangles/Honors_Listing.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/news/kelley-drye-recognized-in-the-legal-500-united-states-2026-rankings) June 10, 2026 [ ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/news/kelley-drye-recognized-in-the-legal-500-united-states-2026-rankings) Honors [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Listing-Images/award_with_wreath_logo.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=750&q=80&w=1125&s=f4ae531803bd7e1c62817bfc6588fefb) ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Listing-rectangles/Honors_Listing.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/news/kelley-drye-earns-top-rankings-in-chambers-usa-2026-across-13-practice-areas-and-more-than-25-attorneys) June 4, 2026 [ ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/news/kelley-drye-earns-top-rankings-in-chambers-usa-2026-across-13-practice-areas-and-more-than-25-attorneys) Honors [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Listing-Images/award_legal_500.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=750&q=80&w=1125&s=a09781ff220c830be6f50654c2a35dc7) ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Listing-rectangles/Honors_Listing.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/news/kelley-drye-lawyers-and-practices-earn-outstanding-recognition-in-legal-500-u-s-2025) July 10, 2025 [ ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/news/kelley-drye-lawyers-and-practices-earn-outstanding-recognition-in-legal-500-u-s-2025) Honors [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Listing-Images/award_with_wreath_blue02.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=750&q=80&w=1125&s=e66be7558f093987a403703c0a58a1e8) ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Listing-rectangles/Honors_Listing.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/news/chambers-and-partners-recognizes-kelley-drye-attorneys-and-practices-in-2025-chambers-usa-rankings) June 5, 2025 [ ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/news/chambers-and-partners-recognizes-kelley-drye-attorneys-and-practices-in-2025-chambers-usa-rankings) [ View all for this practice ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/news?practice=Labor+and+Employment+Counseling+and+Compliance&newsType=Honors#listing) - Past Firm Event [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Listing-Images/yarn_listingv2.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=750&q=80&w=1125&s=ec4fdf93ff6cdc0043959bc5d0dfce56) ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Listing-rectangles/Firm_Event_Listing.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/events/in-fashion-2026-kelley-dryes-11th-annual-fashion-and-retail-law-summit) [ ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/events/in-fashion-2026-kelley-dryes-11th-annual-fashion-and-retail-law-summit) April 14, 2026 9:30am - 6:30pm | Kelley Drye & Warren LLP | 3 World Trade Center, 175 Greenwich Street Speaking Engagement [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Listing-Images/tech_women.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=750&q=80&w=1125&s=478985308138d1ee487a1cabc4367482) ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Listing-rectangles/Speaking_Engagement_Listing.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/events/valve-manufacturers-association-board-meeting-2026) [ ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/events/valve-manufacturers-association-board-meeting-2026) February 24, 2026 Speaking Engagement [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Listing-Images/ny_state.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=750&q=80&w=1125&s=7ba31d6bf90202db1d60bc140dc46f63) ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Listing-rectangles/Speaking_Engagement_Listing.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/events/nysba-2026-annual-meeting) [ ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/events/nysba-2026-annual-meeting) January 14, 2026 New York, NY Speaking Engagement [ ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Listing-Images/speaking_engagement_listing.webp?auto=compress%2Cformat&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&h=750&q=80&w=1125&s=18672987d3d2531bdb2be61fd6f5d26f) ![](https://d3iuizmsm2hayf.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/Listing-rectangles/Speaking_Engagement_Listing.svg) ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/events/commanding-the-room-leadership-executive-presence-for-in-house-counsel) [ ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/events/commanding-the-room-leadership-executive-presence-for-in-house-counsel) December 9, 2025 - Share this entry - - - - - [ View entry pdf ](https://s3.amazonaws.com/cdn.kelleydrye.com/content/uploads/pdf-snapshots/labor-and-employment-counseling-and-compliance-20231128091518.pdf) ### Contact Information - [Mark A. Konkel](https://www.kelleydrye.com/people/mark-a-konkel) Partner (212) 808-7959 email hidden; JavaScript is required ### Related Services - [Employment and Employee Benefits](https://www.kelleydrye.com/practices/employment-and-employee-benefits) - [Employment Litigation](https://www.kelleydrye.com/practices/employment-litigation) - [Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation](https://www.kelleydrye.com/practices/employee-benefits-and-executive-compensation) - [Trade Secrets and Restrictive Covenants](https://www.kelleydrye.com/practices/trade-secrets-and-restrictive-covenants) - [Organized Labor and Labor Relations](https://www.kelleydrye.com/practices/organized-labor-and-labor-relations) - [Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)](https://www.kelleydrye.com/trending/environmental-social-and-governance-esg) Blog Labor Days June 30, 2026 [ ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/viewpoints/blogs/labor-days/navigating-new-yorks-personnel-file-law-what-employers-need-to-know) Blog Labor Days May 21, 2026 [ ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/viewpoints/blogs/labor-days/the-second-circuit-joins-the-party-provencher-v-bimbo-foods-closes-the-door-on-out-of-state-flsa-opt-ins) Blog Labor Days May 11, 2026 [ ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/viewpoints/blogs/labor-days/the-algorithm-ate-my-residency-and-other-stories-for-employers) [View all related viewpoints](https://www.kelleydrye.com/viewpoints?practice=Labor+and+Employment+Counseling+and+Compliance#listing) In the News April 29, 2026 [ ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/news/barbara-hoey-featured-in-law360-article-on-vaccine-bias-suit) In the News March 5, 2026 [ ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/news/commanding-the-room-an-executive-presence-playbook-for-in-house-counsel) In the News February 9, 2026 [ ](https://www.kelleydrye.com/news/kelley-drye-represented-tata-consultancy-services-in-its-700-million-acquisition-of-coastal-cloud) [View all related news](https://www.kelleydrye.com/news?practice=Labor+and+Employment+Counseling+and+Compliance#listing)