Thomas H. Petrides

Thomas Petrides provides thorough and practical advice to companies in every area of employment law.

Backed by 40 years of experience, Tom delivers efficient solutions so his clients can achieve their business goals while complying with federal and state laws and regulations. He also represents them in employment litigation.

Tom represents employers ranging from start-ups to large international corporations in the banking and financial services, manufacturing, construction, transportation, hospitality, health care, high tech, retail, and service industries in California and around the United States. He provides day-to-day counseling on employee terminations, employment discrimination, sexual harassment, wage and hour compliance, FMLA and California leave laws, ADA accommodations, OSHA matters, employment policies, and trade secrets and restrictive covenants.

He defends employers against employment claims in state and federal court and represents them in arbitration and state and federal administrative proceedings. He also defends wage-and-hour class actions under California law, including CAFA removal, as well as PAGA representative actions and FLSA collective actions, on issues including overtime, minimum wage, meal periods, rest breaks, wage statements, working off the clock and PAGA penalties.

Tom also has extensive experience in all aspects of California law covering restrictive covenants, including exceptions to California's public policy prohibiting non-compete agreements and drafting and enforcing compliant customer and employee non-solicitation provisions. He has a long history of representing management in collective bargaining, union organizing campaigns, and proceedings before the NLRB, including bargaining unit determinations, election objections and unfair labor practice charges.

Experience

• Successfully defended a national manufacturer with operations in California in three separate wage and hour class actions seeking millions of dollars, after removing the case to federal court.  The representation included two separate PAGA state court lawsuits, which were also resolved.
• Obtained summary judgment on behalf of a national airport service provider with operations in California against a single plaintiff in a wrongful termination and retaliation lawsuit. At the time of the termination, the former employee was the lead plaintiff in an active wage and hour class action lawsuit.
• Successfully defended a large hospital administrator in a wage and hour class action lawsuit claiming over $100 million in damages on behalf of more than 2,800 employees, after structuring the settlement on behalf of a much smaller group of employees, covering a limited time period, and addressing only a limited number of claims.
• Successfully represented a national real estate service provider in consolidated wage and hour class actions, one of them a national FLSA representative action and the other a California class action, involving hundreds of employees. Settled the matter for less than $5 million, after two previous mediations in which the plaintiffs had sought $70 million and $30 million, respectively.