Module 8: Ethics (2023)

Principal Kathryn M Hartrick

Hartrick Employment Law & Investigations

Kathryn Hartrick, AWI-CH is based in Chicago, Illinois. She is the principal of Hartrick Employment Law & Investigations. The firm’s focus is on workplace investigations, executive coaching, and employment law counseling. Kathryn conducts complex workplace investigations including those crossing international borders, as well as involving C-suite leaders, Boards of Directors, and multiple complainants/respondents. Kathryn is the former Deputy Commissioner for the City of Chicago Commission on Human Relations (CCHR) discrimination agency. She also serves as General Counsel and an executive coach for Robertson Lowstuter, Inc. She is a former law firm partner/litigator, and adjunct law school professor (employment discrimination at Chicago’s Loyola School of Law). Kathryn combines over 25 years of employment law expertise with extensive training in investigations, mediations, and executive coaching. She has been a volunteer mediator for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the Illinois Department of Human Rights (IDHR), and the Center for Conflict Resolution (CCR). Kathryn has held legal and HR corporate officer positions with global, publicly traded corporations, where in addition to providing employment law advice and counsel, she conducted and managed internal investigations. She is an elected Fellow to the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers, an Illinois Super Lawyer by Super Lawyers Magazine; and has a Martindale-Hubbell "AV" rating, the highest ranking in legal ability and ethical standards as determined by lawyer peers. For over 20 years, she has chaired the North Shore Labor & Employment Counsel (NSLC) group, serves on the Board of IICLE, and is former co-president and Board member for local SHRM chapters, NISHRM and NIHRC. She is a faculty member for AWI’s training institute, a sustaining member, and co-convenor for the Chicago-area AWI local circle. Kathryn frequently speaks and writes on a variety of employment law topics including workplace investigations, leave issues, sexual harassment/respect in the workplace, executive coaching, workplace violence, and other topics. Her law degree is from Case Western Reserve University School of Law where she served on the law review, and her BBA is from the University of Michigan Ross School of Business (Go Blue!).

Vida L Thomas

Partner

Oppenheimer Investigations Group LLP

Vida Thomas, AWI-CH, has conducted well over 200 workplace investigations and is experienced in complying with Title IX, Title 5, the Public Safety Officers Procedural Bill of Rights, and the Firefighters Procedural Bill of Rights. She has considerable experience investigating matters within a union setting and is particularly adept at investigating complex matters involving high-profile employers and individuals. Vida frequently trains attorneys and human resources professionals on how to conduct legally effective workplace investigations. Vida has practiced employment law for more than two decades, with years of experience in advising employers on all aspects of employment law and human resources management. She also serves as an expert witness in state and federal employment lawsuits, and mediates litigation and non-litigation matters. Vida assists parties and attorneys in resolving employment claims, including but not limited to harassment, discrimination, and retaliation claims; wrongful termination claims; failure to accommodate and statutory leave violations; whistleblowing claims; wage and hour violations; and invasion of privacy claims. Vida also routinely conducts sexual harassment prevention training (including AB1825 compliance training) for state agencies and private companies. She teaches human resources professionals and EEO officers how to conduct effective workplace investigations, and teaches managers and supervisors how to implement legally effective performance reviews. Clients have complimented Vida’s knack for making the law accessible, explaining complex legal concepts in a way that is both thorough and easy to understand. She believes training is most effective when it provides concrete, useful tips for navigating today’s complicated and highly regulated workplace. She has advised clients and conducted dozens of seminars on the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Family Medical Leave Act, employee drug testing and sexual harassment investigations. Before joining the Oppenheimer Investigations Group, Vida was an of counsel attorney with Stoel Rives LLP and Weintraub Tobin Chediak Coleman Grodin Law Corporation. She began her legal career as an employment litigator at Kronick Moskovitz and then co-founded Carlsen Thomas, LLP, a boutique employment law firm that offered workplace investigations and employee training throughout

Monica R. Jeffrey

JMJ Workplace Investigation Law LLP

Monica Jeffrey, AWI-CH is a founding partner in JMJ Workplace Investigation Law LLP, one of the first law firms in Canada to devote its practice exclusively to conducting impartial workplace investigations in 2013. Prior to becoming a workplace investigator,?Monica?practiced in employment law for 10 years, representing and advising employees and employers.?Monica?became passionate about promoting and enhancing the quality of impartial workplace investigations after receiving a Certificate of Completion from the 2013 AWI Training Institute.? She has investigated many sensitive and complex workplace matters involving highly politicized senior executives and Boards in public and private organizations.??Monica?was integrally involved in developing the Canadian Chapter of AWI and the accredited certificate program for the Training Institute where she regularly serves as chair, evaluator and a faculty member.?Monica?also served as the Chair of the Institute Committee for several years and is the current AWI President.