Wendy C. Butler

Partner

New York + 1.212.326.7822

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Wendy Butler has more than 25 years of experience defending employment-related litigation and advising employers on legal compliance. Her litigation experience includes the defense of class and individual claims arising under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), American with Disabilities Act (ADA), Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), Title VII, Employment Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), and numerous state laws. She counsels clients on a variety of employment issues, including human resources policies, pay equity audits, DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) initiatives, litigation avoidance, employment agreements, restrictive covenants, reductions in force, wage/hour audits and compliance, internal investigations, and issues that arise in connection with corporate transactions.

Wendy is ranked by Chambers USA for Labor & Employment. She has also been recognized by Best Lawyers in America and The Legal 500 US. Clients describe her as a "superlative litigator" and as an "incredible thought partner" who is very "pragmatic" and "responsive."

Wendy has written and spoken on a variety of topics, including the use of artificial intelligence in employment decisions, pay equity, wage and hour laws, sexual harassment claims and prevention practices, whistleblower and discrimination litigation, and the defense and settlement of class actions. She is a member of the New York State Bar Association Labor & Employment Section, where she has served on the Wage and Hour Committee.

Experience

  • Luxury department store chain develops employee programming to mitigate spread of COVID-19 within workplaceJones Day represented a luxury department store chain during the COVID-19 crisis to develop appropriate protocols and policies for implementing an employee temperature screening program, a face covering program, work from home and return to work policies for employees suffering from COVID-19, respiratory illness, or exposure to individuals with COVID-19.
  • Aetna summary judgment win and dismissal of nationwide putative wage-hour class action affirmed by Second CircuitJones Day secured a victory on behalf of Aetna Life Insurance Company at the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, who affirmed summary judgment in favor of Aetna and the dismissal of a nationwide collective action under the Fair Labor Standards Act.
  • One Equity Partners acquires All Metro Health CareJones Day represented One Equity Partners LLC in connection with its acquisition of All Metro Health Care, a provider of in home care services.
  • Pret A Manger successfully limits scope of notice in FLSA collective actionJones Day represents Pret A Manger (USA) Limited in a putative class and collective action matter involving claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA") and New York Labor Law ("NYLL") for unpaid overtime and alleged unlawful tip pooling, among other claims.
  • ABM acquires provider of aviation facility management services Air Serv for $158 millionJones Day advised ABM Industries, Inc. in its $158 million acquisition of Air Serv Corporation, a leading provider of integrated facility management services for the world's leading airlines and freight companies at airports throughout the United States and the United Kingdom.
  • Pret A Manger defends against statewide FLSA collective action on behalf of all current and former Managers In TrainingJones Day was retained by Pret A Manger (USA) Ltd. to defend the company in a lawsuit brought by a former employee alleging that he and a class of current and former Managers in Training were misclassified as exempt from federal and state overtime laws.
  • U.S. Chamber of Commerce submits amicus curiae brief challenging expansion of whistleblower provisions of Sarbanes-Oxley ActOn behalf of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Jones Day filed a brief as amicus curiae in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, and subsequently in the United States Supreme Court, in support of employers who successfully argued that the language of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act provided whistleblower protection only for employees of publicly held companies, not employees of contractors or subcontractors of public companies.
  • IBM wins preemptive motion to deny class certification of California wage claimsOn behalf of International Business Machines Corporation, Jones Day preemptively defeated class certification of California-law wage claims.
  • TheMarkets.com sells its research and estimates business to CapitalIQJones Day assisted in advising TheMarkets.com LLC in the sale of its research and estimates business to Capital IQ, a Standard & Poor's business and subsidiary of The McGraw-Hill Companies.
  • IBM obtains summary judgment as to claims of named plaintiff seeking to represent statewide class of California IT workers in wage-hour class actionOn behalf of International Business Machines Corporation, Jones Day obtained summary judgment as to the claims of the named plaintiff seeking to represent a statewide class of California IT workers in a wage-hour class action.
  • MCI obtains summary judgment dismissing claims of race discrimination and retaliation under Title VII and the New York Human Rights LawJones Day represented MCI Communications, Inc. in a claim brought by a former employee alleging race discrimination and retaliation under Title VII and the New York Human Rights Law.
  • Aetna obtains decision compelling arbitration of whistleblower claim under Sarbanes-Oxley ActJones Day represented Aetna Inc. in a whistleblower complaint brought by a former high level executive.
  • IBM settles FLSA and ERISA class action involving technical support workers' exempt statusJones Day represented International Business Machines ("IBM") in litigating and settling this lawsuit, which was filed in January 2006 on behalf of a putative class consisting of IBM's technical support workers nationwide.
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    October 2024 Alert

    Illinois Becomes Second State to Pass Broad Legislation on the Use of AI in Employment Decisions

    June 2024 Commentary

    Pay Equity and Transparency: Expanding Obligations for U.S. Employers with EU Operations

    January 2024 Commentary

    It's Time for a Fresh Look at DEI Metrics in Executive Compensation

    December 2023 Reprint

    What's Ahead For Immigrant Employee Rights Enforcement (Law360)

    November 2023 Alert

    New York State Limits Remedies for Breach of Nondisclosure Provisions in Settlement Agreements

    July 2023 White Paper

    AI at Work: Navigating the Legal Landscape of Automated Decision-Making Tools in Employment

    June 2023 Alert

    Amended New York WARN Regulations Now in Effect

    April 2023 Alert

    New York City Releases Final Rules on Automated Employment Decision Tools

    April 2023 Commentary

    New Jersey WARN Act Amendments Expanding Coverage and Increasing Severance and Notice Requirements Now in Effect

    APRIL 2023 Commentary

    New Federal Laws Provide Expanded Protections for Pregnant and Nursing Workers
    View All

    Additional Speaking Engagements

    • November 2, 2022
      Strategies for Complying With Emerging Pay Equity and Pay Transparency Laws, 2022 Annual New York Labor & Employment Law Discussion Group
    • October 17, 2019
      NYC SHRM Legislative & Legal All-Day Conference
    • April 3, 2019
      PLI's Psychological Issues in the Workplace 2019
    • June 18, 2018
      PLI's Employment Discrimination Law & Litigation 2018
    • May 9, 2018
      Resetting Sexual Harassment and Hostile Work Environments Policies and Reviewing Strategies to More Effectively Implement Such Policies, HR Policy Association
    • May 1, 2018
      Jones Day's Media Labor & Employment Law Roundtable
    • February 13, 2018
      PLI's Wage & Hour Litigation and Compliance 2018
    • October 25, 2017
      Employment Policy Under PresidentTrump: The New DOL's Overtime, Joint Employment,and Independent Contractor Agenda
    • June 12, 2017
      ACI’s 30th National Forum on Wage & Hour Claims and Class Actions
    • April 13, 2017
      PLI's Understanding Employment Law 2017
    • April 2016
      PLI's Understanding Employment Law 2016
    • September 2014
      2014 Labor & Employment Seminar - New York
    • March 19, 2014
      2014 NYU Workshop on Employment Law for Federal Judges
    • November 22, 2013
      Recent Developments in New York Wage and Hour Laws, New York State Bar Association's Fifth Corporate Counsel Institute
    • April 18, 2013
      Bridgeport CLE's FLSA/Wage & Hour 2013 Litigation & Management
    • January 2013
      Recent Developments in Wage and Hour Law, NYSBA Annual Meeting
    • September 23, 2010
      Emerging Technologies & Workplace Privacy: The Evolving Understanding of Privacy Expectations in the Workplace
    • April 2007
      Survey of Recent Developments in ERISA Litigation
    • 2000
      FMLA Update, Council of Education and Management

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