Audrey Merkel practices at von Briesen & Roper, S.C. in Waukesha and is a member of the firm’s Labor and Employment Section. She focuses her practice on representing businesses, government, and schools with employment and COVID-related issues. In addition to her legal training, Audrey studied public relations and is a Certified Mediator, which are both critical components in representing public agencies. During law school, Audrey served as the Associate Editor for the Journal of Law & Social Policy and competed in the ABA Negotiation Competition. She is a member of the Milwaukee Bar Association and the State Bar of Wisconsin.
Bob Simandl is a Shareholder at von Briesen & Roper, S.C. in Waukesha and serves as Chair of the firm’s Labor and Employment Section. He has over 30 years of experience advising clients on a wide range of employee benefits, labor, and employment law issues. Bob counsels employers on all aspects of workplace compliance including hiring, disciplining and terminating employees, accommodation obligations, wage and hour issues, affirmative action, discrimination complaints, non-competition agreements, and employee handbook design and development. He has represented employers before the federal district courts, National Labor Relations Board, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, and a number of administrative agencies and tribunals, including the Wisconsin Employment Relations Commission, the Wisconsin Equal Rights Division, and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
- Understand the responsibilities of employers and workers in an independent contractor relationship
- Examine how the standard for classifying workers as independent contractors has evolved
- Stay current on recent NLRB changes to independent contractor classification
- Mitigate the risks associated with misclassification of workers
- Develop a compliance plan for employers who opt to utilize independent contractors
- Labor and employment lawyers
- Business lawyers
- General practitioners