Fred W. Batten

Fred W. Batten has represented employers in the full spectrum of labor and employment matters for over 30 years.  He has been management’s chief spokesperson in labor contract negotiations with the UAW, Steelworkers, Teamsters, AFSCME, OCAW, and various other unions.  He regularly represents employers in arbitration cases and in contested matters before federal agencies such as the NLRB, DOL, EEOC, and OSHA, as well as their Michigan state agency equivalents.  Michigan has a unique State occupational safety and health law in which Fred has developed a special expertise. In civil litigation, he has represented fortune 500 companies and their members of management in employment litigation matters ranging from discrimination and retaliation to wrongful discharge to libel and slander.

As a representative of management, Fred has assisted corporate clients (both union and non-union) on some of the most troubling issues in today’s businesses environment: reductions in force, outsourcing, plant closings and relocations, remaining union free, and reallocating health care costs.  His practice includes advice on the more day to day issues as well, such as advising employers on handbooks and corporate policy, dealing with FMLA and employee attendance and performance issues, and general compliance with state and federal social legislation.  Although labor and employment matters tend to cross industry lines, his principal engagements have been with automotive, chemical, steel, financial services, construction, health care, and not for profit employers.