Piecing Together the HR Puzzle

Part of our complimentary Bagels & Coffee with Boardman Clark webinar series.

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Assembling a clear picture of the HR landscape remains as difficult as ever. New challenges are moving into the forefront while some long-standing employment law fundamentals are calling for fresh perspective. In "Piecing Together the HR Puzzle," we will cover the pressing topics that are shaping employment law right now, including:

• The latest on immigration worksite enforcement actions
• How to properly conduct workplace investigations
• Important considerations in handling arrest and conviction records
• Understanding the intersection of leave and accommodation laws (including FMLA, ADA, PWFA, and more)
• Updates in the world of employee benefits

PRESENTATIONS

Navigating Worksite Immigration Enforcement: Hot Topics and Best Practices for September 2025

By Nikki Schram & Jennifer Johnson

Many U.S. companies hire foreign nationals as an essential part of their workforce. In 2025, U.S. government agencies, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), have significantly increased worksite enforcement actions, creating uncertainty for business owners nationwide. Companies face heightened legal, financial, and reputational risks, making proactive compliance measures essential. This presentation will provide an overview of the current landscape and strategies to protect your business.

In this session you will learn:

• Three types of worksite enforcement actions: An overview of I-9 audits, visa compliance visits, and ICE raids.
• Emergency response protocols: What to do when government agents arrive at your workplace.
• Industry-specific impacts: Why restaurants and service industries face heightened scrutiny and unique challenges.
• Beyond the News headlines: Why employing foreign workers remains viable with proper compliance measures.

Getting to the Bottom of It: How to Conduct Effective Workplace Investigations

By Storm Larson

Workplace investigations seem routine, but they can take many different forms. While most investigations share a lot in common, employers must think strategically when conducting them to maximize their effectiveness and to reduce legal risk as much as possible.

In this session you will learn:

• Tips for conducting effective investigations and strategic considerations for employers to keep in mind.
• How and when to identify what type of investigation is necessary for a given scenario.
• Overview of documentation considerations stemming from an investigation.

Arrest and Conviction Record Law Developments

By Doug Witte

The Wisconsin Fair Employment Act (WFEA) generally prohibits employers from discriminating against individuals on the basis of their arrest and conviction records, subject to certain exceptions. One of those exceptions permits employers to refuse to hire or terminate an employee or applicant if the material circumstances of a pending charge or conviction bear a "substantial relationship" to the circumstances of the job at issue. The Wisconsin courts have issued several recent decisions refining the analysis employers must use. Intertwined with this analysis is the proper use of background checks. Many employers who use background checks don't know what to do with the information once they get it, or don't comply with certain steps in getting the information. This session will review the current state of arrest and conviction record law in Wisconsin, and discuss background check issues and pitfalls, including the FCRA (Fair Credit Reporting Act).

In this session you will learn:

• About arrest and conviction record discrimination under local, Wisconsin, and federal law and the "substantial relationship" exception.
• How to process arrest and conviction record information in light of recent court decisions.
• What you can do if your employee is arrested.
• What steps you must take if using a third-party vendor to conduct background checks.

Navigating the Legal Alphabet Soup of Leaves and Accommodations

By Brian Goodman

FMLA, ADA, PWFA, PUMP, WC, WFEA. These are only some of the laws employers might have to follow when an employee asks for time off of work or for an accommodation. These laws can be triggered when employees experience serious health conditions, disabilities, worker's compensation injuries, pregnancy, child birth, or lactation. In many situations, an employee might be covered by more than one of these laws at the same time. Employees don't have to specifically invoke their rights under these laws, so long as employers are generally on notice of their potential need for leave or accommodations. One goal of this session is to help employers identify and navigate situations when employees are covered by these various state and federal laws.

In this session you will learn:

• The scope of various state and federal laws requiring employers to accommodate employees or grant them leave.
• How to commit to the interactive process regarding accommodations.
• The importance of thinking through all the various laws implicated by an employee's specific situation.

Benefits Update: One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) and Several Smaller Not-So-Beautiful Developments

By Mike Wieber

While the OBBB did not bring revolutionary changes to the benefits world, there were a few tweaks to health and welfare plans. Additionally, with rapid changes on so many fronts under the current administration and through supreme court decisions, we will present the "latest and greatest" benefits updates.

In this session you will learn:

• What the OBBB means for your benefits plans.
• How recent Supreme Court decisions have affected fees, forfeitures, and fiduciary duties.
• What has changed and is likely to change in the benefits landscape through executive orders.

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