IPLRA Update

James Daniels Related Seminars and Products

Deputy General Counsel – Labor Relations

Illinois Department of Central Management Services

James Daniels is the Deputy Director of Labor Relations at the State of Illinois’ Central Management Services. He is responsible for managing the labor initiatives for the forty agencies under the office of the Governor, which include the negotiation of State union contracts, the resolution of statewide grievances, and the disposition of issues arising from the creation of new agencies, legislative transfers, layoffs, closures, and the implementation of new statewide policies such as remote work, health insurance and artificial intelligence. Previously he served as counsel for the Fraternal Order of Police Labor Council, in which position he negotiated over a hundred collective bargaining agreements and litigated numerous  grievances throughout the State of Illinois, to include many interest arbitrations for police, correctional and deputy units. He has also successfully represented his clients in the Fifth District Appellate Court. He brings with him a wealth of experience from both the union and management perspective, as well as a good working relationship with the representatives of the dozens of unions that represent State employees.

James is a graduate of John Marshall Law School. He currently lives and works in Springfield, Illinois.

Helen J. Kim Related Seminars and Products

General Counsel

Illinois Labor Relations Board

Helen Kim has been the General Counsel for the Illinois Labor Relations Board since November 1, 2016.  Prior to her position at the ILRB, she was General Counsel at the Illinois Department of Labor, the state agency charged with administering and enforcing various labor laws, including the Illinois Minimum Wage Law, the Wage Payment and Collection Act, and the Prevailing Wage Act.  Helen began her state service as labor relations counsel with the Illinois Department of Central Management Services, representing state agencies in arbitrations as well as cases before the ILRB.  She was also an Assistant State’s Attorney in the Civil Actions Bureau of the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office where she represented Cook County and its elected officials in labor and employment matters.  Helen received her undergraduate degree in Mathematics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and her law degree from the University of Minnesota Law School.

Steve A. Yokich, JD Related Seminars and Products

Partner

Dowd, Bloch, Bennett, Cervone, Auerbach & Yokich, LLP

Stephen A. Yokich graduated from Northwestern University in 1978 and cum laude from the University of Michigan Law School in 1981. He clerked for the Honorable George Edwards, the Chief Judge of the U. S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit from 1981 to 1982. Steve served as the General Counsel for Labor for the Education and Labor Committee of the U. S. House of Representatives from 1993 to 1994. He worked as an Associate General Counsel for the International Union, UAW in the UAW’s Washington D.C. office from 1995 to 1998 and held a half-time position with the UAW from 2001-2016. He was a partner at the union-side labor law firm of Cornfield and Feldman before joining the firm in 2015.

Steve represents private and public sector labor unions in cases before state and federal labor relations boards and in state and federal trial and appellate courts. This representation encompasses the enforcement of union contracts and the defense of cases involving allegations of discrimination, breach of the duty of fair representation and state law torts. He represents unions in cases with the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration and with State occupational safety and health agencies. He also represents individuals and classes of individuals in suits under the civil rights acts, in suits involving the wage and hour laws and in suits involving retiree health and pension benefits.