Nuts & Bolts: Discipline and Discharge

Eric B. Bernard Related Seminars and Products

Associate

Petrarca, Gleason, Boyle & Izzo, LLC

Eric Bernard represents school districts in many different capacities, including litigation, labor disputes (including grievance arbitration and unfair labor practice disputes), employment discrimination matters, property tax exemption disputes, and general advice and counseling. His litigation experience encompasses federal Section 1983 claims, employee discrimination claims, FOIA and Open Meetings Act litigation, Wage Payment and Collection Act claims, contractual disputes, real estate matters, and tort claims. With respect to labor disputes and litigation, Eric has litigated before numerous arbitrators, the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board, the Illinois Appellate Court and the Illinois Supreme Court. Eric practices regularly in both state and federal court.

Thaddeus H. Goodchild Related Seminars and Products

Deputy General Counsel

Chicago Teachers Union

Thad has served as in-house counsel for the Chicago Teachers Union since 2012, and as Deputy General Counsel since 2019.  He represents the CTU and its members in collective bargaining, grievance arbitration, discipline and discharge proceedings, labor board proceedings, and related litigation.  The Chicago Teachers Union represents more than 30,000 teachers and educational support personnel working in schools funded by City of Chicago School District 299, and by extension, the over 300,000 students and families they serve. The CTU is an affiliate of the American Federation of Teachers and the Illinois Federation of Teachers and is the third-largest teachers local in the United States. Thad holds a bachelor’s degree, magna cum laude, from Hope College in Holland, Michigan, and a law degree and certificate in labor and employment law from Chicago-Kent College of Law.

Susan M. Matta Related Seminars and Products

Shareholder

Allison, Slutsky & Kennedy, P.C.

Susan is a shareholder with Allison, Slutsky & Kennedy, P.C.  Her union career began in 1995, when she entered the AFL-CIO Organizing Institute’s Apprenticeship Program, and later became a staff union organizer at UFCW Local 951, where she worked on NLRB election campaigns and corporate pressure campaigns.  After graduating from law school, Susan served as a Law Fellow with Service Employees International Union on a corporate pressure campaign against a local hospital chain, where she represented individuals who were sued for medical debt.  Susan then served as the General Counsel for Service Employees International Union, Local 73 for almost ten years, where she represented both public and private employees.  As in-house General Counsel, she gained invaluable and extensive knowledge of the institutional concerns and needs of unions, conducted numerous trainings for both staff and members, and gained extensive experience representing the various types of public and private sector employees in negotiations, arbitrations, State and Federal Court, the National Labor Relations Board, Illinois Labor Relations Board, Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board, Illinois Department of Human Rights and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.   

In 2013, Susan transitioned to private practice with Carmell Charone Widmer Moss & Barr, where she became a partner and focused on representing firefighter clients.  She is also experienced at representing firefighter unions in contract negotiations, contract enforcement, interest arbitration, unfair labor practice proceedings, and court litigation. In 2019, she joined Asher, Gittler & D’Alba, Ltd. as a partner. She joined Allison, Slutsky & Kennedy, P.C. in 2022, where she continues to represent firefighters and other public and private sector clients.