Areas of Practice
Industries
Bar Admissions
- California
Court Admissions
- U.S. District Court, Central District of California
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of California
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
Education
University of California, Los Angeles, J.D.
- Law Review
Laura Worsinger is Senior Counsel to Dykema and has more than three decades of counseling and litigation experience. She specializes in two highly regulated areas of the law: employment and trade regulation.
Trade Regulation
Ms. Worsinger is an expert on trade regulation, marketing and promotional matters. She has substantial experience advising clients as to pricing programs, product labeling and in-store and internet sales and advertising. She defends clients with respect to federal and state trade regulation claims involving pricing, contests and sweepstakes, telemarketing, privacy and unfair and deceptive practices. Her skill in aggressively dealing with regulatory agencies and private attorneys general has resulted in excellent outcomes for her clients.
As a former official with the Federal Trade Commission, Ms. Worsinger headed up national antitrust investigations of wholesale and retail pricing in the apparel and consumer electronics industries and obtained numerous consent orders. She also spent five years in-house, representing the JC Penney Company.
Ms. Worsinger has represented many prominent companies engaged in both manufacturing and retailing, including: Nike, VF Corporation, VF Sportswear, Tommy Hilfiger, Manhattan Beachwear, Nautica, Kipling, Lucy Sportswear, BCBG, Michael Stars, 7 Jeans, Big Dog, ABS, Laundry, Juicy Couture, Perseption, Irene Neuwirth, Borghese, Baby Lulu, Francesca's Collections, Un Deux Trois, Sugarbrand, Nzania, John Paul Richard, Lunada Bay, Lamps Plus, JC Penney, Macy’s, John Varvatos, Brooks Brothers, Hurley and Cole Haan.
Also as a member of the Executive Board of the California Fashion Association and an authority on regulatory issues in the manufacturing and retailing industries, she consults industry leaders on legislative issues and critical national and global trade matters, specializing in compliance with regulatory requirements.
Employment
Ms. Worsinger is a specialist at matters involving the employer-employee relationship including discrimination, harassment, retaliation, minimum wage and overtime, representing clients before state and federal courts and administrative agencies, such as the Department of Labor, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the California EDD and the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing.
Her expertise and uncommon knowledge of wage and hour law has enabled her to develop and implement policies for clients that are compliant with diverse federal and state requirements. This includes numerous regulations, including the eight hour day, employee classification, meal and rest periods premiums, the California Wage Orders, the Private Attorney General Act ("PAGA"), "Waiting Time" penalties and Itemized Earnings Statement requirements under the Labor Code.
Ms. Worsinger heads up a Dykema litigation team that succeeded in defeating class certification in a number of wage and hour class actions brought against national apparel manufacturers and retailers, food processors and restaurant chains. She has also defended dozens of discrimination and harassment claims, most of which she was able to resolve at minimal cost to her clients.
Creativity and common sense are of utmost importance to Ms. Worsinger. Taking an aggressive proactive stance, Ms. Worsinger has developed innovative policies and procedures aimed at ensuring compliance with the myriad of federal and state rules and regulations, enabling clients to do business anywhere in the U.S. including California:
- Her program, "It's Fit that Counts," has helped clients properly classify workers, avoid expensive claims, defeat class actions and prosper in highly regulated states.
- She has developed preventative policies to avoid WARN Act claims for clients dealing with downsizing and layoffs.
- California mandates that employers with 50 or more employees anywhere in the US provide Sexual Harassment Prevention Training. Ms. Worsinger has created a state of the art interactive program that assists supervisors in preventing and responding to sexual and other forms of harassment and provides mechanisms to implement and promptly address and correct wrongful behavior.
- California laws place strict limitations on employers' ability to control employee competition. She has designed unique non-compete, non-solicitation, non-disclosure and arbitration agreements that have withstood challenge in California courts and provided significant protection for employers.
- An expert on the Fair Credit Reporting Act, Ms. Worsinger counsels employers on credit and criminal reports and on employee investigations and reference checks.
Seminars & Speeches
- February 2, 2021
- February 1, 2018
- March 23, 2017
- June 9, 2016
- Avoiding Employee Lawsuits, California Fashion AssociationJuly 15, 2015
- California's New Paid Sick Leave Law Not an Easy Pill to Swallow, California Fashion AssociationFebruary 2015
- New California Employment Laws, Fashion Industry Human Resource Association, Los Angeles Chapter, California Fashion AssociationFebruary 23, 2012
Publications
- September 15, 2020Labor & Employment Law Bloghttps://www.laboremployment-lawblog.com/california-expands-coronavirus-paid-sick-leave-with_091520
- October 14, 2019Daily Journal
- January 30, 2019Daily Journal
- July 12, 2016
- July 1, 2016Law360https://www.law360.com/articles/812896/la-paid-sick-leave-law-another-bitter-pill-to-swallow
- "California Employment Law Update—What's New in 2016"Vol. 42, No. 1 Summer 2016Employee Relations Law Journal
- "Zero Tolerance"December 2013Convene Magazine
- "What to Expect When Your Employees are Expecting"January 15, 2013California Daily Journal
- "Employee Seating Requirements In California"January 10, 2012ACC Lexology Website
- "California Transparency in Supply Chains Act"December 19, 2011ACC Lexology Website
- "New California Employment Laws"October 19, 2011ACC Lexology Website
- "State and Federal Regulations Impacting California Employers in 2011"January 12, 2011ACC Lexology Website
- "Employee Expense Reimbursements: Best Practices for Avoiding Wage/Hour Claims"November 2008BLR-Business & Legal Resources
- "Surviving I-9 Audits and No-Match Letters"April 2008California Fashion Association
- "Avoiding the Overtime Dilemma"February 2008Mortgage Banking Magazine
- "Pre Employment Screening-Tips for Background Checks"October 2006Security Magazine
- " 'Enquiring Employment'—What You Need to Know Before Investigating Applicants and Employees"Spring 2006Points & Authorities
News
- October 28, 2020
- July 1, 2016
- Sheds Light on New Workplace Regulations that Govern Pregnancy in the WorkplaceMay 8, 2014
- Provides Perspective on Legal Consequences of Sexual Harassment and Other Inappropriate Behavior at Meetings, Conferences and ConventionsJanuary 31, 2014
- Will Address Recent Changes in Piece Rate Compensation LawAugust 14, 2013
- $9.5 Million Deal Brings Print, Digital Platforms to Newly Formed AffiliateOctober 12, 2012
Alerts
- February 23, 2021
- December 18, 2020
- December 20, 2019
- December 20, 2019
- October 8, 2019
- October 3, 2019
- March 29, 2019
- December 4, 2018
- July 3, 2018
- May 21, 2018
- April 13, 2018
- March 19, 2018
- March 7, 2018
- November 13, 2017
- October 16, 2017
- June 30, 2017
- June 27, 2017
- January 12, 2017
- December 23, 2016
- June 30, 2016
- May 18, 2016
- March 28, 2016
- December 17, 2015
- December 8, 2014
- December 8, 2014
- May 28, 2014
- April 28, 2014
- April 25, 2013
- New Regulations Expand Protections Under California’s Pregnancy Disability Leave (PDL) LawJanuary 8, 2013
- October 24, 2012
- May 15, 2012
- April 18, 2012
- April 12, 2012
- March 16, 2012
- January 10, 2012
- December 16, 2011
- October 19, 2011
- June 14, 2011
- April 11, 2011
- December 22, 2010
- August 12, 2010
- April 30, 2010
Press Releases
- April 24, 2019
Blog Posts
- Is Wi-Fi Sickness a Disability? California Appellate Court Holds That It Is Under FEHA
- California Employment Law Alert: New Employment Laws Effective On or Before January 1, 2021
- California Expands Workplace Protections Related to COVID-19 by Enacting Two Statutes Regarding Notice Requirements and Workers’ Compensation Coverage
- California Expands Coronavirus Paid Sick Leave with the Enactment of AB 1867
- AB 5 Is Making Waves in California by Changing the Way Businesses Classify Workers
- New California Employment Laws to Take Effect in January 2019 and Beyond
- Wake up and Smell the Coffee: California Supreme Court Limits Use of the De Minimus Doctrine as a Defense to Claims for Small Amounts of Unpaid Wages
- Easy as ABC: California High Court Mandates New Test for Independent Contractors–Most Workers Should Now be Classified as Employees
- New Regulations Expand Protections Under California’s Pregnancy Disability Leave Law (“PDL”) Law
- Class Action Waivers In California: New Pro-Employer Appellate Court Decision Generates Shock Waves
- The California Supreme Court Meal and Rest Period Ruling in the Brinker Case: What Should Employers Do Now?
Memberships & Involvement
- California Fashion Association, Lecturer and Executive Board Member
- Los Angeles County Bar Association
- Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce, Retail Crime Committee
- Past President Board of Governors, Braemar Country Club
Awards & Recognition
Recipient of an AV® Preeminent™ Rating by Martindale-Hubbell