RUSTY TURNER'S practice primarily focuses on the defense of adverse employment decisions and labor relations. Rusty represents employers in handling all types of workplace discrimination charges, including those for harassment and retaliation. Rusty represents employers in maintaining non-union status, collective bargaining negotiations, work stoppages and arbitration. Rusty also represents employers in drafting employment, severance, non-compete and confidential contracts, employee handbooks and substance abuse policies. Additionally, Rusty defends employers and management against claims for defamation, invasion of privacy and tortious interference with contracts. Rusty also advises and defends employers with workers' compensation claims and issues. In addition, Rusty has successfully defended a variety of other general litigation matters, including those involving premises liability, creditor's rights and shareholder disputes.
Representative Matters
· Prevailed in labor arbitration hearing with United Auto Workers ("UAW") over discharge of thirty year employee fired after violation of national energy company's drug usage policy
· Defeated former employee's race discrimination and defamation claims against national hair salon and former employee's manager
· Successfully mediated EEOC class action alleging workplace harassment such that employer ultimately paid less than 20% of EEOC's alleged monetary claim
· Obtained defense verdict on former employee's retaliatory discharge claim following three day liability hearing before American Arbitration Association ("AAA") in which employee alleged that he had been demoted and harassed following filing of workers compensation claim
· obtained dismissal of employee's race discrimination and retaliation claims against national franchisor after proving that franchisor could not be held liable as plaintiff's "employer" under any of the federal statutes upon which she sued franchisor.
· Defeated state law wrongful discharge claim based on employer's allegedly negligent failure to comply with drug testing policy
· Defeated claim of female employee allegedly raped by management employee in company bathroom
· Defeated age discrimination claim of management employee at district court level and after oral argument before Fifth Circuit
· Successfully defended validity of auto manufacturer's affirmative action program against claims of reverse discrimination
· Defeated claim of striker involved in picket line misconduct at unfair labor practice trial and on appeal before National Labor Relations Board
· Defeated prospective bar pilot's state/federal claims against bar pilot's association for refusal to accept prospective pilot's application
· Defeated employee's state law claims for intentional infliction of emotional distress against railroad engineer for allegedly subjecting employee to verbal/physical assaults
· Defeated employee's claim against poultry processor for race and gender discrimination and for wrongful denial of health insurance
· Defeated accounting manager's state law claims for breach of contract and negligent administration/analysis of drug test
· Defeated casino employee's claims against casino arising from patron's assault of employee
Professional Activities
· Mississippi Bar, Labor & Employment Law Section, Chairman, 2004-2005
· Government Affairs Director for the Mississippi Society for Human Resource Management ("SHRM"), 2012-2013
Events
January 26, 2007, Legal Workshop Update