Labor & Employment

We perform sophisticated statistical analysis for both class action claims and individual plaintiff cases, involving allegations of discrimination in hiring, compensation, performance assessment, promotion, termination, and reductions in force. We have been retained in cases involving allegations of discrimination based on age, gender, race/ethnicity, and intersectional categories. We have experience with cases involving the Equal Pay Act of 1963, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, and several state statutes.

We provide support through all phases of litigation, mediation, and arbitration, including pre-trial discovery, trial strategy, class certification, liability determination, determination of economic damages, rendering of expert reports and rebuttal reports, deposition and cross-examination, and expert testimony. We also provide support in settlement negotiations.

In our litigation, mediation, and arbitration work, we:

• Emphasize understanding our clients’ institutional and economic situation (as characterized by their human resource structure, decision-making processes, labor markets, and product markets) and ensure that our models reflect these realities
• Are known for our careful preparation of complex data, including the marriage of human resource data with payroll data and historical files
• Provide rigorous, creative, and informative analyses using the latest tools and techniques from labor economics and statistics
• Communicate our analysis and results so that they are easily understood by clients, arbitrators, mediators, judges, and jurors
• Are involved in every stage of the project, from data preparation to report writing

Representative Work:

• Retained as testifying experts on behalf of the defendant, a leading energy infrastructure company, in a class action lawsuit alleging race discrimination in pay and promotion, resulting in a favorable settlement. 
• Retained as testifying experts on behalf of the defendant, a leading professional services company, in a class action lawsuit alleging gender discrimination in pay and promotion, resulting in a denial of class certification.
• Conducted analysis on behalf of the defendant, a Fortune 500 consumer goods company, in a class action lawsuit alleging race discrimination in performance and compensation systems, resulting in a favorable settlement.
• Retained as testifying experts on behalf of the defendant, a leading public relations and advertising company, in a class action lawsuit alleging gender discrimination in pay, resulting in a denial of class certification.
• Retained as testifying experts on behalf of the defendant, a large wholesale manufacturing company, in a class action lawsuit alleging gender discrimination in hiring, resulting in summary judgment in favor of the defendant.
• Retained as testifying experts on behalf of the defendant, a Fortune 100 technology company, in a single plaintiff case alleging age discrimination in termination.

We assist corporations, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations in studying their workforce. We are experts in analyzing HR data. This lends itself to addressing pressing DE&I concerns, as well as leveraging data to support organizational goals.

We partner with our clients to design studies to address their most pressing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) concerns and inform company decisions and actions at the executive team and board level. These studies also provide our clients with a comprehensive view of the underlying “drivers” of their diversity profile, including their hiring, promotion and attrition processes.

We have considerable experience both in conducting representation and pay equity studies from a gender, race, or age perspective, and in examining associated hiring, retention, performance evaluation, promotion, and termination practices and policies. We are experts in using publicly available data to conduct representation benchmarking studies that put clients’ workforce in the context of external labor markets. We also have a streamlined and sophisticated proprietary approach to preparing individualized pay adjustments and comprehensive pay remediation solutions.

Although much of our work has focused on DE&I, we are experts in using data to understand workforce dynamics. We specialize in identifying the key factors influencing employee outcomes, such as pay and promotion, and in assessing how well those factors align with company culture and policies. Furthermore, we are experienced in working with predictive models to anticipate shifts in a company’s workforce and provide strategic advice on adjusting hiring practices to align with goals.

We are excited about using Generative AI to mine and systematically analyze textual data allowing us to leverage information already collected and maintained by many of our clients, including resumes, performance reviews, employee satisfaction surveys, and exit interviews. The data gathered and processed with AI allows us to better understand which candidates are best suited for a particular job, identify specific attributes associated with higher performance and better employee outcomes, and understand the drivers of voluntary employee turnover.  

Representative Work:

• Modeled future employee headcount based on historical workforce dynamics, as well as shifting labor market dynamics, for a prominent scientific research organization. Provided recommendations on hiring practices based on our analysis.
• Analyzed resumes to understand the common attributes among candidates who received interviews and were hired as compared to those who were unsuccessful, for a Fortune 1000 insurance company.
• Conducted gender and race representation studies, along with benchmarking of representation to national and local labor markets, for a Fortune 100 finance and technology company. Also analyzed the company’s performance system, its retention and attrition, and its pay equity; produced recommendations for pay remediation; and were involved in briefings to the board and the executive team.
• Created a comprehensive DE&I report card with respect to gender and race for an insurance company, including pay equity and representation of incumbent employees, and the contribution of hiring rates, attrition rates, and promotion rates to the representation pattern. Also conducted an audit of job applications to assess representation in the qualified applicant pool.
• Conducted annual pay equity analysis with respect to race and gender for a global consumer goods company. Advised executive team and made recommendations for pay remediation that were successfully implemented.

We often work with legal counsel on cases in which the client company is facing an audit or investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). In these cases, we analyze company-provided data to establish if a statistical basis exists for the DOL’s concerns and help prepare appropriate responses. We also assist companies in instituting DOL-mandated human resource system improvements.

Representative Work:

• Retained as economic experts on behalf of the defendant, a Fortune 100 telecommunications company, facing an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) suit alleging age discrimination in re-hiring, resulting in the EEOC withdrawing its suit.
• Retained as economic experts on behalf of the defendant, a large technology company, facing an EEOC suit alleging age discrimination in termination, resulting in a favorable settlement.
• Retained as economic experts on behalf of the defendant, a large hospital system, facing an EEOC suit alleging race discrimination in hiring, resulting in a favorable settlement.

We are experts in modeling the full economic impact of losses suffered by individuals and their families. We frequently estimate the damages associated with employment infractions, including pay violations, employee “leveling,” failure to hire, failure to promote, terminations, and reductions in force. Additionally, we have extensive experience in the valuation of losses in contexts such as wrongful death, loss of use, and loss of opportunity.

We have extensive experience estimating damages related to employment infractions in both single-plaintiff and class action litigation. In both cases, the analysis is highly dependent on the type of infraction and is always tailored to address the specific allegations. Often, our analyses begin with an examination of liability, which then informs the scope of the damages. Common factors considered include lost wages and fringe benefits, institutional realities of the company, labor market conditions in the relevant industry or occupation, and the plaintiffs’ “duty to mitigate.”

We are experts in the valuation of losses suffered by families due to the wrongful death of a family member. Our analysis considers the full economic impact of the death to the family or estate of the decedent. Areas of economic loss may include loss of wages, fringe benefits, and household services. The decedent’s work-life expectancy, real growth in earnings, level of education, and lifetime earnings trajectory are just some of the factors we consider. We are proud of our ability to collect all relevant data through comprehensive research into case-specific details. Our methodology is state-of-the-art, and our valuation team always includes a forensic accountant and a demographer with actuarial skills.

Representative Work:

• Retained as testifying experts on behalf of the defendant, an energy company, to estimate the economic loss for residents and workers within a mandatory evacuation zone following an industrial accident, resulting in a favorable settlement.
• Retained as economics experts on behalf of the defendant, a utility company, to estimate the economic losses associated with claims of pay and promotional discrimination, resulting in a favorable settlement.
• Retained as economic experts on behalf of the plaintiffs to estimate the economic loss associated with discriminatory hiring practices at a large transportation company, resulting in favorable settlement.
• Retained as economic experts on behalf of the defendant to estimate the economic loss associated with the death of a U.S. citizen living overseas with a complicated earnings and asset profile, resulting in a favorable settlement.
• Retained as testifying experts on behalf of the defendant, an aircraft manufacturing company, in a wrongful death suit; prepared and presented an estimate of economic loss at trial, resulting in a jury verdict in favor of the defendant.