37th Annual Illinois Public Sector Labor Relations Law Conference

A two half-day virtual conference, featuring both live stream and pre-recorded webinar sessions*
Thursday, December 2, 2021 | 9:00am - 1:15pm & Friday, December 3, 2021 | 9:00 AM - 1:05 PM

Join Illinois labor lawyers and labor relations specialists to gain real-time access to the key decision-makers who will shape the future of Illinois’ public sector. This year’s program will be a two half-day virtual conference, featuring both live stream and pre-recorded webinar sessions. Register today and earn up to 7.5 hours of Illinois MCLE credit hours!

*Up to an additional 13.75 hours of CLE credit can be earned by post-conference viewing of the alternate concurrent sessions, at no additional cost.

PROGRAM SCHEDULE

Thursday, December 2

9:00 – 9:05am Welcome and Announcements

9:10 – 10:25am CONCURRENT SESSIONS

Public Education: Lessons Learned from the Pandemic LIVESTREAMING

John Brosnan, Special Counsel, Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board
Lisa Callaway, Partner, Engler, Callaway, Baasten & Sraga
Steve Yokich, Partner, Dowd, Bloch, Bennett, Cervone, Auerbach & Yokich, LLP

IPLRA Developments LIVESTREAMING

Thomas Bradley, Partner, Laner Muchin
Helen J. Kim, General Counsel, Illinois Labor Relations Board
Jerry J. Marzullo, Partner, Asher, Gittler & D'Alba, Ltd.

Social Media and Employee Discipline

Carlos Arevalo, Partner, Klein, Thorpe & Jenkins, Ltd.
James Brennwald, Arbitrator
Jeff Goelitz, Partner, Hodges Loizzi
Taylor Muzzy, Partner, Jacobs, Burns, Orlove & Hernandez, LLP
Anita Tanay, General Counsel, ATU Local 308

10:35 – 11:50am CONCURRENT SESSIONS

Virtual Bargaining and Mediation: An Assessment for the Post-Pandemic Future LIVESTREAMING

Beth Barton, IEA Uniserv Director, Illinois Education Association - NEA
Brenda D. Pryor, Commissioner, Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service
Dennis L. Weedman, Attorney, Robbins Schwartz

IELRA Developments LIVESTREAMING

Thaddeus H. Goodchild, Deputy General Counsel, Chicago Teachers Union
Kimberly M. Jannotta, Partner, Del Galdo Law Group, LLC
Ellen Maureen Strizak, General Counsel, Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board

Interest Arbitration: A Year in Review

Tamara Cummings, General Counsel, Illinois FOP Labor Council
John H. Kelly, Partner, Ottosen DiNolfo Hasenbalg & Castaldo, Ltd.
Brian E. Reynolds, Arbitrator

Nuts and Bolts of Strikes and Impasse Resolution

Melissa Auerbach, Partner, Dowd, Bloch, Bennett, Cervone, Auerbach & Yokich, LL
Gary Bailey, Attorney, Illinois FOP Labor Council
Mark W. Bennett, Partner, Laner Muchin
Robb B. Craddock, Senior Director, Labor & Employee Relations, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
John J. Weathers, Commissioner of Mediation, Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service

12:00 – 1:15pm Plenary - As We Move Forward: Major Recent Events and Their Impact on Public Sector Labor LIVESTREAMING

Beverly S. Bunch, Professor, Department of Public Administration, University of Illinois Springfield
Stacy Davis Gates, Vice President, Chicago Teachers Union & Executive Vice President, Illinois Federation of Teachers
Joel M. Weisblatt, Chair, New Jersey Public Employment Relations Commission
Alex Breland, Counsel, Litigation & Employment, CDK Global

Friday, December 3

9:00 – 10:15am CONCURRENT SESSIONS

The Future of Work LIVESTREAMING

Kelly A. Coyle, Attorney, Clark Baird Smith, LLP
JP Fyans, President, Teamster Local 916
Susan M. Matta, Partner, Asher, Gittler & D'Alba, Ltd.
Amber Spainhour, Assistant Director, Labor Relations, State of Illinois, Department of Central Management Services

Finances and Public Sector Labor Relations LIVESTREAMING This session does not qualify for CLE credit.

Jennifer A. Dunn, Partner, Franczek P.C.
Mike Newman, Deputy Director, AFSCME Council 31
Erin L. O'Boyle, Deputy Director, Labor Relations, Illinois Department of Central Management Services

Higher Education Issues

Nicholas Christen, Strategic Research Director, Illinios Federation of Teachers
Melissa Mlynski, Associate Vice Chancellor of Human Resources, University of Illinois Springfield
Andrew Slobodien, Associate Director, Labor & Employee Relations, University of Illinois at Chicago

10:25 – 11:40am CONCURRENT SESSIONS

Vaccination Issues LIVESTREAMING

Alice Johnson, General Counsel, Cook County College Teachers Union
Mary M. (Betsey) Madden, Chief Legal Counsel & Ethics Officer, Illinois Department of Human Rights
Jill P. O'Brien, Partner, Laner Muchin
Tyson Roan, Chief of Staff, SEIU Local 73

Firefighter Forum

Margaret Angelucci, Partner, Asher, Gittler & D'Alba, Ltd.
Benjamin E. Gehrt, Attorney, Clark Baird Smith, LLP
Karl Ottosen, Managing Partner, Ottosen DiNolfo Hasenbalg & Castaldo, Ltd.
Chuck Sullivan, President, Associated Fire Fighters of Illinois

Police Forum

David Amerson, Staff Attorney, Policemen's Benevolent & Protective Association of IL
Felicia Frazier, Partner, Odelson, Sterk, Murphey, Frazier & McGrath, Ltd.
David A. Johnson, Partner, Franczek P.C.
Joseph R. Mazzone, Chief Counsel, Metropolitan Alliance of Police

11:50 – 12:50pm Burnout Prevention: Maintaining Mental Health in the Legal Profession LIVESTREAMING

Chelsy A. Castro, Psychotherapist & Consultant, Castro Jacobs Psychotherapy and Consulting

11:50 – 1:05pm CONCURRENT SESSIONS

Open Meetings Act Update LIVESTREAMING

Leah Bartelt, Deputy Public Access Counselor, Public Access Bureau, Illinois Attorney General's Office
Bryan Diemer, Attorney, International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150, AFL-CIO
A. Lynn Himes, Equity Partner, Himes, Petrarca & Fester, Chtd.

Nuts and Bolts of Labor Board Investigations

Nick Gutierrez, Staff Attorney/Investigator, Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board
Kimberly Stevens, Executive Director, Illinois Labor Relations Board

Click here to download the full program schedule

Click here for information about our Speakers

Sessions not indicated as livesteams are pre-recorded video content along with real-time speaker interaction available via live chat room throughout each session.

CONTINUING LEGAL EDUCATION CREDITS

This conference is eligible for up to 7.5 hours of General CLE credit in 60-minute states, and 8.7 hours of General CLE credit in 50-minute states.*

*Up to an additional 13.75 hours of CLE credit can be earned by post-conference viewing of the alternate concurrent sessions, at no additional cost.

Burnout Prevention: Maintaining Mental Health in the Legal Profession is eligible for 1.0 hours of Mental Illness Awareness credit in 60-minute states and 1.2 hours of Mental Illness Awareness credit in 50-minute states.

Virtual Bargaining and Mediation: An Assessement for Post-Pandemic Future sessions is eligible for 1.25 hours of Ethics credit in 60-minute states, and 1.5 hours of Ethics credit in 50-minute states.

Credit hours are estimated and are subject to each state’s approval and credit rounding rules.

Chicago-Kent College of Law will seek accreditation for this conference in the following states: CA, IL, IN, MO, NY, OH, PA, TX, and WI.

States typically decide whether a program qualifies for MCLE credit in their jurisdiction 4-8 weeks after the program application is submitted. For many live events, credit approval is not received prior to the program.

TO RECEIVE CLE CREDIT: If you have met the participation requirements, you will receive a personalized CLE affidavit link from mcle-kent@americanbar.org within 72 hours after you have confirmed your attendance in CE21, under the certificate tab. Please check your spam or junk folders if you do not recieve an email. Please note only one affidavit link is needed for the entire virtual conference. Once you complete the affidavit, you will be able to download your certificate(s) of attendance and you will also receive them via emailed from mcle-kent@americanbar.org.

CONFERENCE PRICING

	Early Registration: through 10/31/21	Regular Registration: 11/1 - 11/26/21	Late Registration: 11/27 - 12/2/21
Individual	$275/person	$300/person	$325/person
Group*	$225/person	$225/person	$225/person

* Register five or more individuals, in one transaction, to qualify for the group rate. The discount will be applied to your cart during checkout.

ACCESSIBILITY OR SPECIAL REQUESTS? WE ARE HERE TO HELP! CONTACT THE OFFICE OF CONTINUING LEGAL EDUCATION
EMAIL: cle@kentlaw.iit.edu | PHONE: 312.906.5090

This conference is presented in cooperation with the Illinois Labor Relations Board and the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board

UPCOMING EVENTS

12/1

First Wednesday Series: U.S.Immigration and Asylum Law - Beyond the Headlines and Politics

2/17

National Security Law Virtual Conference: The Future is Now: Emerging Technologies and National Security Law