He has published articles and lectured on the psychology of persuasion in labor negotiations. Freddy has served as the lead negotiator in multi-million-dollar labor negations and regularly handles severance negotiations on behalf of employees and employers.
Severance Negotiations
It is a relatively common practice for employers and employees to seek to formally end their relationship through a severance/separation agreement. These agreements, when appropriate, allow the parties to amicably part ways without incurring the financial, psychological, and emotional costs of litigation. Under these agreements, employees are typically provided some level of compensation to reward the employee for past service, aid the employee in the transition, and/or induce the employee to release legal claims he/she may otherwise assert against the employer.
Parties should be cautious when drafting and negotiating severance/separation agreements. In the labor and employment context, there are specific items that are legally prohibited from being in a release agreement or otherwise non-binding without the necessary language. On the flip side, there is specific language that must be included to release certain employment claims, such as a claim under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act.
Collective Bargaining Negotiations
The labor/management relationship in a collective bargaining setting is one where divorce is virtually impossible. The parties must work with each other. The relationship is perpetual. Differences and disagreements do not sever the relationship. As a result, the parties must be far sighted and cooperative. It is through this lens that Freddy has handled collective bargaining negotiations in both the public and private sectors.
