The seminar is complimentary for Dentons Davis Brown clients and is intended for employers, managers, HR professionals, officers, directors, and corporate counsel.

Learn from Dentons attorneys as they use real-world case studies to illustrate strategies for the opportunities, changes, and challenges you may face on topics such as:

• Mental health accommodations
• Employee monitoring and data security
• Navigating FMLA, ADA, and workers’ compensation claims

Agenda

Check-in will begin at 9:30 a.m. at the Iowa Events Center, sessions will start at 10 a.m., and conclude at 3:00 p.m. Lunch is included. You are welcome to attend all day or choose the portions best suited for you. Presentation details are below.

Morning Session 1 | 10:00-10:50 a.m.

Choose one presentation to attend.

Highs and Lows: Workplace Drug Testing and Medical Marijuana | Katelynn McCollough and Joni Ploeger | Room 302

This presentation will explore Iowa’s workers’ compensation and employment laws on drug testing and medical marijuana. There are implications for injured workers under workers’ compensation, as well as general employment law matters. Often these areas of law intersect and conflict regarding drug testing and medical marijuana.

I-9 Compliance, Competence, and Confidence | Beth Coonan and Kailey Blazek Naranjo | Room 303

This session will train employers on how to confidently manage their I-9 process, including discussions ranging from best practices on how to avoid noncompliance pitfalls to understanding how to hire foreign-born talent. With summer internships and similar employment opportunities just around the corner, we will also highlight foreign student hiring.

Employer Tax Issues in a Brave New World | Mike Gilmer and Maggie Hanson | Room 304

This presentation will address current tax issues facing employers in a post-pandemic world.  It will focus on new tax concerns brought to light by the pandemic and an increasingly remote

workforce. Topics will include employee recruitment/retention incentives, tax implications of remote workers, employee loan assistance payments, PTO compliance, and more.

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Morning Session 2 | 11:00-11:50 a.m.

Choose one to attend.

What’s Next for Work and Wellness | Michele Brott, Maggie Hanson, and guest Andrea Vignovich | Room 302

For employers everywhere, unchecked employee mental health issues are the culprits of reduced engagement, lost productivity, high rates of employee absenteeism, and expensive employee turnover. We have teamed up with mental health professional, Andrea Vignovich, LMHC at Cognizant Counseling, to discuss the intersection of both the practicalities and legal implications of mental health in the workplace, and to discuss skills, ideas, and best practices to navigate these waters.

The Business Must Go On: Succession Planning for Death of the CEO | Jana Weiler and Breanna Young | Room 303

The death of a key employee can cause major disruption in the operation of the business, particularly if it happens unexpectedly. This presentation will discuss the succession planning that the company and key employees need to consider now to minimize disruption in the future.

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Complimentary Lunch | 12-1:00 p.m.

Chaos and Consternation – Agencies Look to Change Severance, Settlement and Non-Competes | Elizabeth Coonan, Michele Brott, Maggie Hanson, Deborah Tharnish, Jo Ellen Whitney | 312-316
 
In the last few months, a great deal of change has occurred relating to core employment issues of how employers ensure the confidentiality of severance agreements, protect their business information, and work going forward. We have seen everything from the passage of legislation such as the Speak Out Act, the NLRB changes on confidentiality, and a notice of proposed rulemaking from the FTC which would essentially ban non-competes. We plan to highlight these rapidly changing areas of law and provide a forum for discussion.

Afternoon Session 1 | 1:10-2:00 p.m.

Choose one presentation to attend.

Same Old Song and Dance with a New Refrain: Open Records and Meetings Law Post-COVID-19 | Spencer Willems and Jo Ellen Whitney | Room 302

This presentation will cover a brief overview and refresher on Open Meetings (Iowa Chapter 21) and Open Records (Iowa Chapter 22) laws and their impact on employers. Presenters will also highlight some changes to both laws—by statute and in practice—since March 2020 as well as emerging trends with public records requests.

Should I Contest the Claim? Unemployment Benefits Update | Clark Butler and Kacy Flaherty-Tarpey | Room 303

With Iowa’s changing labor landscape, it can be difficult to evaluate how or if you should contest an unemployment compensation claim. This presentation will walk through that process with an eye on Iowa’s current and future legislative updates.

Workplace Investigation Best Practices | Michele Brott and Logan Kraus | Room 304

This discussion will walk employers through the workplace investigation process, highlighting best practices, pitfalls to avoid, and other considerations. It will close with a brief update on the state of Iowa law regarding investigation documentation and use.

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Afternoon Session 2 | 2:10-3:00 p.m.

Choose one presentation to attend.

Documentation in an Age of Litigation | Spencer Willems and Deborah Tharnish | Room 302

Attend to receive an overview of the importance of employee documentation in discipline performance, FMLA/ADA requests, and others. This presentation will include interactive hypotheticals and illustrative examples of good documentation vs. bad documentation.

Navigating the Bermuda Triangle: ADA/FMLA/Workers’ Compensation | Maggie Hanson and Joni Ploeger | Room 303

One of the most common types of questions we get from employers has to do with an employee needing temporary leave for one reason or another. ADA, FMLA, and workers’ compensation must all be considered. We will explore the interplay of all three to help employers navigate these tricky situations.

When Everyone is Watching – Employee Surveillance and Tracking in a Remote World | Jo Ellen Whitney | Room 304

One of the biggest concerns for employers in a remote world is how to assure their employees are productive. This concern has led to growth in employee monitoring. Employees continue to cite issues with ensuring fairness in the workplace which leads to increasing numbers of employees recording day-to-day workplace interactions and posting them on social media. Privacy laws are also changing and becoming more restrictive for most businesses, while in areas of administrative and litigation claims, these recordings are showing up. This is an interactive session designed to address these questions in a rapidly changing tech and legal environment.

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Virtual Registration and Attendance

In addition to attending in-person at the Iowa Events Center, attendees have the option to participate via webinar. Webinars are set up by rooms. During the seminar, we will start/stop webinars as the presentations begin/conclude. Register for the room(s) with your preferred sessions. The webinar registration links below include each session presented in that room. The descriptions above also include room numbers.

Questions?

As we draw closer to the event, registrants will receive an email with the final details. If you have any questions, please contact Cara.Seidl@dentons.com.