Fundamentals of Contract Negotiation

Carlos S. Arevalo Related Seminars and Products

Partner

Klein, Thorpe & Jenkins, Ltd.

A panelist at the Public Sector Labor Conference for several years, Carlos Arévalo has been practicing law for more than 20 years and has significant experience in representing Illinois public sector clients in the areas of labor and employment law involving benefits, termination, discipline, labor arbitration and collective bargaining, as well as local government law. He also represents clients in state and federal court and in administrative proceedings before the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission, Illinois Department of Human Rights, Illinois Labor Relations Board and more. Carlos also represents private sector clients, including profit and non-profit entities as well as individuals. Additionally, Carlos served as a member of the Board of Trustees for McHenry County College. He was president of the McHenry County Bar Association and Stateline SHRM Chapter. Carlos continues to be active in leadership for the Illinois State Bar Association’s labor and employment and local government related committees, frequently speaking on these issues at the state and local level. Carlos is a member of the Leadership Greater McHenry County Class of 2013 and sits on the Regional Board of the Mercy Health System

Matthew Carpenter Related Seminars and Products

General Counsel

Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 73

Matt Carpenter is currently the General Counsel for SEIU Local 73. Prior to that, Matt practiced at a union-side labor law firm where he represented clients in both the private and public sectors.  Matt began his legal career as a general practitioner but soon thereafter took a position with a Michigan healthcare local. In that role, in addition to traditional staff attorney duties, he negotiated dozens of contracts before returning to Chicago. Although he’s a regular attendee at the Public Sector Labor Conference, this is his first time presenting at the Conference.

Amanda R Clark Related Seminars and Products

Shareholder

Asher Gittler & D'Alba Ltd.

Amanda Clark is a shareholder at Asher, Gittler & D’Alba, Ltd., starting with the firm in 2011 as a law clerk. Amanda has experience in public sector labor law across Illinois, representing bargaining units of firefighters, trades employees and educational employees. Her experience includes contract negotiations, grievance arbitrations, disciplinary hearings, and IELRB and ILRB proceedings, and state and federal litigation.

Amanda is a 2012 graduate of Chicago Kent College of Law with a certificate from the Martin H. Malin Institute for Law and the Workplace. She received her undergraduate degree from North Park University. Amanda is an active member of the American Bar Association Section of Labor and Employment Law. She currently serves as the Union Co-Chair of the State and Local Government Bargaining and Employment Law Committee. She is also currently a Co-Vice-Chair of the ABA Labor and Employment Law 17th Annual Conference Committee. Amanda has co-authored an annual report reviewing public sector grievance arbitration decisions for the State and Local Government Bargaining and Employment Law Committee, as well as co-authored papers on the impact of the U.S. Supreme Courts Janus decision, and the Illinois Workers’ Rights Constitutional Amendment.

Robb Craddock Related Seminars and Products

Executive Director

University of Illinois

Robb B. Craddock currently serves as Executive Director of Labor and Employee Relations within Illinois Human Resources at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In this role, Mr. Craddock acts as the University’s chief labor relations spokesperson and oversees the administration of 18 collective bargaining agreements covering Civil Service employees and 4 agreements covering Academic employees. He also represents the Chancellor and Provost in grievance proceedings.

Prior to joining the University of Illinois, Mr. Craddock served as Deputy Director of Labor Relations for the Illinois Department of Central Management Services (CMS) from September 2008 to January 2015. In that capacity, he managed labor relations on behalf of the Office of the Governor, representing the largest employer in the State of Illinois. His work involved negotiations with a broad range of labor unions, including the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Teamsters, and various trade unions.  In 2019, Mr. Craddock returned to CMS in collaboration with the University of Illinois to serve as Chief Labor Relations Negotiator and Executive Branch Labor Relations Advisor. During this tenure, he successfully negotiated a resolution with AFSCME Council 31, concluding a four-year labor dispute. In October 2013, Mr. Craddock accepted the James Baird Leadership Award on behalf of CMS, presented by the Illinois Public Employer Labor Relations Association (IPELRA). This annual award recognizes outstanding leadership and achievement in public sector labor relations in Illinois.

Mr. Craddock is an active member of the National Public Employer Labor Relations Association and serves on the board of IPELRA. He holds a Master of Public Administration with a graduate certificate in Public Sector Labor Relations from the University of Illinois at Springfield, and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Western Illinois University