Standing Up to Antisemitism in the Workplace – Presented by The Florida Holocaust Museum’s Lawyers of Conscience – On-Demand Session

The Lawyers of Conscience of The Florida Holocaust Museum Present
Standing Up to Antisemitism in the Workplace

Moderator: Dawn Siler-Nixon

Dawn is a member of the Board of Directors of The Florida Holocaust Museum. As an attorney she spent two decades partnering with her clients to help guide and direct their employment decisions to avoid the time and expense of litigation, and creating and executing a strategy to defend them through trial should the need arise. Dawn uses depth of knowledge and expertise to ensure that clients exceed their Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) goals, while avoiding legal landmines.

She is committed to knowing her client’s businesses. Dawn’s familiarity with her client’s businesses and industries and knowledge of current legal trends is beneficial to her clients in preparing for and thwarting any potential adverse actions. It is for these reasons that employers turn to her to defend them in administrative proceedings and state and federal court actions involving sex, age, national origin, race and other discrimination claims. Dawn has extensive experience handling ADAAA and Family and Medical Leave Act claims and has successfully litigated multiple plaintiff Age Discrimination claims in state and federal court.

Dawn provides regular training and counsel to employers on a variety of issues to ensure compliance with new laws and emerging trends. She provides helpful tools, including checklists for employers to use to detect and prevent potential claims and acts as a partner to employers in evaluating day-to-day employment decisions from disciplinary actions to termination. As a Certified Diversity Executive, Dawn routinely provides DEI advice, training and workshops designed to allow employees to recognize and combat their biases and create safe spaces where employees can bring their full selves to work and engage in courageous conversations across differences.

Dawn is the Firm’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Partner with responsibility for the oversight and implementation of the Firm’s Diversity Strategic Plan. As the Firm’s DEI Partner, Dawn is a member of the Management Group and the Firm’s seven (7) person Executive Committee, the Firm’s highest governing body that sets policy and compensation. Dawn is recognized as a Certified Diversity Executive through the National Institute for Diversity Certification.

Panelist: Johanna Zelman

Johanna Zelman is the office managing partner for FordHarrison’s Hartford, Connecticut office.

Johanna’s background in municipal employment and school law and healthcare results in highly competent, in-depth and knowledgeable advice and representation for her clients. While she has represented a wide variety of employers from various industries, Johanna has a specific strength in matters arising in the municipal employment setting and in public schools and universities. Johanna represents municipalities and school boards in a wide array of matters, from consulting to litigation.

Johanna is a frequent and dedicated author and presenter on vital topics addressing the individual in the workplace, such as LGBTQ+ rights, mental health, religious freedom, and countering antisemitism.

Johanna’s prior work at Harvard University’s affiliate hospitals, where she had direct contact with patients being treated for various mental health disorders, offers not only a unique perspective in legal issues related to special education, but proves extremely helpful when handling issues involving the ADA, the FMLA, and other behavioral or mental health issues arising in the employment setting. Johanna is highly effective in defending fact-intensive and highly complicated counseling and litigation matters related to employment, general civil rights and special education.

Johanna has litigated matters and successfully defended public and private sector employers and governments before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, the USDC for the District Connecticut, the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York and the Connecticut Supreme, Appellate and Superior Courts. She has also represented employers and school districts before various state and federal administrative agencies, including the EEOC, DOL, CHRO, CSDE, Connecticut FOI Commission, and Connecticut WCC.

Panelist: Rachel Ziolkowski Ullrich

Board Certified in Labor & Employment Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, Rachel is one of the most experienced litigators in the firm and has represented clients in litigations, trials, arbitrations, appeals and a variety of administrative hearings (EEOC, Texas Workforce Commission, Department of Labor, OSHA and other state and federal agencies) nationwide. Rachel is not afraid to take a case to trial, and has the track record to prove it.

When she isn’t handling litigations, Rachel provides counseling services to clients on a variety of issues, including diversity and inclusion, employee discipline and terminations, labor relations, wage and hour, medical leave and workplace accommodation issues. She also assists employers in creating policies and handbooks that are compliant nationwide. As a litigator who has seen the dramatic increase in jury verdicts in employment cases throughout the country in recent years, Rachel believes that in person management training is a company’s best defense against such verdicts and regularly provides top notch, interactive training to the firm’s clients.

Rachel is a routine writer and presenter on a variety of employment law issues and has a knack for knowing what the “next big issue” will be in employment law, allowing her clients to stay ahead of emerging issues. For example, Rachel has been speaking across the country about how the rise in anti-Semitism in this country has impacted the workplace.

Rachel’s clients come in all shapes and sizes and she represent a wide range of industries, but as a graduate of the Conrad N. Hilton College of Hotel and Restaurant Management, she has a real appreciation for the restaurant and hospitality industries and is passionate about reducing food insecurity, particularly in young children. Rachel is a frequent volunteer at her local elementary school’s peace pantry which provides food support to over 50 families every week during the school year.

Panelist: Michael A. Igel

Michael A. Igel is Board Chair of The Florida Holocaust Museum and Chair of the Florida Commissioner of Education’s Task Force on Holocaust Education.

The grandson of Holocaust survivors (Stanley and Lusia Igel, Henry Ferber), Michael frequently speaks about his entire family’s experience and has seen firsthand how Holocaust education improves the world. Igel has served on The Florida Holocaust Museum Board since 2014 and has held the role of Chair since 2018.

Mike is a Co-Chair of the Johnson Pope Health Care Team, and concentrates his practice on the representation of physician groups, pharmacies, hospices, hospitals and health systems, home health agencies and other health care companies in a variety of regulatory, compliance and health care business matters. As the Chair of Johnson Pope’s Health Care Audit Defense Team, Mike has extensive experience in representing health care providers in defense of claims for overpayment by Medicare, Medicaid, and insurance companies.