Speakers

Charles Abramo is currently Group VP of Human Resources at Delaware North, a global hospitality organization.  In this role he oversees the strategic HRBP function, employee relations, and shared services.  Previous to Delaware North he has held senior HR leadership positions at HelloFresh, Whole Foods Market, and Gap Inc.

He holds a Masters in Organizational Leadership from Gonzaga University and a Bachelors in Communications from Niagara University.  He has participated in many programs including Stagen’s Executive Leadership Program.  He is a current board member of Pet Emergency Fund, a nonprofit organization helping individuals with the medical costs related to their pets.  Additionally, he serves on the Advisory Board for HR Exchange Network, where is also a columnist and speaker.

He is the recent recipient of Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 Recognition.

Paul Ades is senior vice president for labor relations and Americas operations for Hilton. He leads Hilton’s global labor relations function, negotiates collective bargaining agreements, provides strategic counsel on labor matters, and oversees Hilton’s legal operations group.

Prior to joining Hilton, Ades served as general counsel for labor and employment at MGM Resorts International, and as associate general counsel for Caesars Entertainment. He also practiced law at Steptoe & Johnson in Washington, D.C.

Ades is a graduate of Williams College and the law school at the University of California, Berkeley, where he was editor of the law review.

Rachel Aleks is an Associate Professor of Management and Labor Studies at the Odette School of Business, University of Windsor. Rachel received her Ph.D. in Industrial Relations and Human Resources from the University of Toronto. Her research interests include innovative union organizing strategies, gender dynamics within unions, and sexual harassment. Rachel teaches courses on labor relations, workplace conflict, and employment law. Prior to attending graduate school, Rachel worked as an organizer for the Service Employees International Union. She is also active in the movement for just treatment of justice-involved individuals, having taught in the Cornell Prison Education Program and through her ongoing work with the John Howard Society of Ontario.

Carlos Aramayo is the President of UNITE HERE Local 26, the Union for hospitality workers in the greater Boston area and Rhode Island. He is also a Vice President of the Massachusetts AFL-CIO, an International Vice President of UNITE HERE and a trustee of UNITE HERE Health and the Greater Boston Hospitality Employers Trust. In addition to his work in the Union, he is a member of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation’s Board of Directors and a member of Massachusetts Governor Maura Healy’s Advisory Council on Latino Empowerment. During his eighteen years with UNITE HERE, he has organized casino gaming, hotel, and industrial food service workers in Connecticut, Nevada, Florida, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. As Organizing Director of UNITE HERE Local 26 from 2011-2016, he led successful campaigns to double the size of the Local. He first became involved with the labor movement as a rank-and-file organizer with the Graduate Employees and Students Organization (now Local 33) at Yale University, where he earned a Ph.D. in Latin American history.

As Regional Vice President, Talent Acquisition & Development – Americas, Kathryn oversees the talent acquisition, development and DE&I initiatives for Hyatt’s Americas region.

Kathryn began her career at Hyatt Regency San Francisco 23 year ago, where her first position was a Corporate Management Trainee in Operations.  She followed her passion and moved into Human Resources early in her career and held several different Human Resources roles on the West Coast before joining Hyatt’s corporate team in Chicago in 2019.

Kathryn has been leading the region’s efforts in developing strategies to attract top talent and to develop Hyatt’s future leaders.  She’s played a critical role in bringing Hyatt’s DE&I commitments, Change Starts Here, to life in the region by implementing talent development programs supporting the growth of diversity in their general manager pipeline.

Kathryn holds a bachelor’s degree in Hotel and Restaurant Administration from Washington State University in Pullman, Washington.  Kathryn, her husband, three children and beloved dog Chico live in the Chicago suburb, Naperville.

J.D. Barnes serves as the Global Vice President of Workforce Innovation at Hilton, leading a team focused on evolving the future of work. In addition to these responsibilities, he oversees Hilton’s early talent development program and Pathways Office.  He joined Hilton in 2015, holding prominent roles across the operations and strategy function, and led Hilton’s internal process improvement team. Prior to Hilton, Mr. Barnes worked in consulting, advising Fortune 100 clients on operational improvement and growth initiatives. A native of Toronto, he received his BAH from Queen’s University and his MSc. from Columbia University.

Denise Bober is the rare executive who ignited her professional passion by enjoining two highly appealing disciplines – human resources (HR) and the hotel business – as the fuel for a successful career. As one of the industry’s premier HR specialists, she remains as highly charged by her responsibilities today as when she first shifted to hospitality from the health care/benefits sector. Her intrinsic respect for people and the desire to put them in a nurturing environment where they can thrive, grow and develop, reflect the employee-centered philosophy of The Breakers Palm Beach, for whom she has worked since 1988.

It is not a surprise that the resort, one of the most financially healthy and thriving hotel companies in the U.S., has designed Human Resources and Finance to have far-reaching influences in each department. There is no question in Bober’s mind that employee fulfillment is the guarantor of guest satisfaction, which directly impacts the bottom line. “Our people are one of our greatest assets and we place a tremendous value on their fulfillment, which drives the resort’s exceptional retention rates,” notes Bober. The Breakers has one of the highest benchmark retention rates in the industry.

This kind of approach has made The Breakers especially unique, not just as a hotel, but as an employer. Bober’s main concern is to attract and cultivate talent, and to motivate and retain employees. Accordingly, she built an aggressive recruiting strategy to build a stable, enduring workforce that supports consistent, first-class service and long-term business objectives. Her mission is to hire good people and then find the best role for them – one that suits their talents and competencies – instead of simply hiring people to fill particular positions.

Bober’s active leadership extends to the Palm Beach community.  She has served nine years on Palm Health Foundation’s board of trustees as well, most recently as chair. She returns as a philanthropy committee member with a dedication to social impact, an area she has championed during her three decades of human resources and benefits management expertise at one of America’s most successful hotel companies. She sets the example professionally as a member of the Executive Women’s Association of the Palm Beaches, Global Women 4 Wellbeing, and a former member of the Global Wellness Institute’s Social Impact Committee. In 2018, the Global Wellness Summit recognized Bober as a Leader in Workplace Wellness and Palm Beach Atlantic University named her as one of its 50 most notable alumni. In 2020, the South Florida Business Journal honored Bober as one of its Most Influential Business Women.

David Broderdorf is a partner in Morgan Lewis’s labor and employment practice group. His practice focuses on private and public-sector labor/management relations, including under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and the Railway Labor Act (RLA). His matters involve union organizing campaigns; collective bargaining negotiations; work stoppages; arbitrations; National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), National Mediation Board (NMB), and Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA) administrative proceedings; and related litigation. David provides strategic counseling for clients in many sectors including automotive, airlines, energy, federal government, hospitality, manufacturing, retail, and transportation.

David successfully handles some of the largest, most complex labor/management relations disputes and issues confronting employers, including their response to evolving economic, legal, and political change, as well as employee relations unrest generated by this change. He brings a passion for learning about his clients’ businesses and offering exceptional client service through creative and practical solutions.

David is a regular presenter at the ABA Railway and Airline Labor Law Committee conference, the ALI-CLE Airline/Railroad Labor & Employment Law conference, and Cornell Center for Innovative Hospitality Labor and Employment Relations events. He is a member of the firm’s automotive & mobility and retail & eCommerce industry initiatives.

David is a contributing editor of The Developing Labor Law treatise, a senior editor of the Railway Labor Act treatise, and a guest lecturer for the labor law course at Georgetown University Law Center.

David also is an avid supporter of pro bono initiatives related to small business, entrepreneurism, and economic development.

An accomplished & passionate Human Resources and hospitality leader, Debbie enjoyed a multi-dimensional career with Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts. As the Vice-President of HR – Americas, she was the people and culture leader for fifty hotels and over 10,000 employees in the US, Canada, Latin America, and the Caribbean. Widely recognized as an employer of choice, Four Seasons was on the FORTUNE “Best 100 Companies to Work For” in each of the years in which Debbie held her position.

Combining her HR and hospitality experience, she currently provides consulting services to small and mid-size private and family-owned businesses in which hospitable services is a key business deliverable and a company value.

Debbie is a past member of the American Hotel and Lodging Association HR Committee; Cornell Institute for Hospitality Labor & Employment Relations; University of Denver School of Hospitality Executive Advisory Board as well as Washington State HR Executive Roundtable. In 2019, she was awarded a Lifetime HR Achievement Award by Cornell University.

Originally from Minnesota, Debbie graduated from the University of Denver and began her hospitality career with Hyatt Hotels. She is based in Seattle, Washington.

Keith Chapman currently serves as Geneal Counsel for Instawork. Keith brings deep expertise in legal policy and litigation related to worker regulation, as well as a commitment to social justice. He most recently spent four years at Postmates, where he grew the legal team and established company policies that are informing today’s public discourse on the gig economy. Prior, he worked at Littler Mendelson, a leading labor law firm, and at the NYC Commission on Human Rights. He graduated from Rutger University School of Law and Davidson College.

Cleo Clarke stands as a seasoned luminary in the field of Human Resources, amassing a remarkable career spanning more than 25 years. Currently serving as the Vice President of People & Culture at M&R Hotel Management, Cleo’s professional journey is accentuated by his unwavering commitment to excellence and innovation within the realm of Human Resources strategy.

 Preceding his present role, Cleo was the Global Vice President of Human Resources at Accor/sbe, a position of considerable influence where he meticulously shaped the trajectory of sbe’s Human Resources landscape. At the forefront of this charge, Cleo orchestrated pioneering strategies that resonated across executive echelons, C-suite executives, and the Field Human Resources Leadership Team alike. In his capacity as a Senior HR Executive, Cleo’s credo revolves around a steadfast commitment to elevating customer-centric standards and nurturing a profound people-first philosophy. With an extensive portfolio behind his expertise, Cleo’s team remains poised to perpetuate an unwavering commitment to delivering unmatched service that gratifies both internal stakeholders and external patrons.

Patty Cousins serves as Global Officer, HR Operations & Partnerships for Marriott International, Inc., the world’s largest hotel company.  In this role, she oversees and leads the senior HR partners for all corporate disciplines across the company.  In addition, Patty leads the HR Operations Center of Excellence (COE).  This COE drives a consistent focus on HR organizational effectiveness and innovation, as well as provide ongoing support for associate relations, HR compliance, HR contracts and governance, and ESG Human Capital.  Patty collaborates closely with all of Marriott’s HR COEs, Continent HR teams, and other disciplines to optimize HR operations globally in a manner that aligns with Marriott’s overall business strategy, core values, and culture.

Patty’s career with Marriott has spanned 20 years.  She started in the Law Department in 2003 as Senior Counsel, followed by promotion to Vice President and Assistant General Counsel.  Patty continued to take on increasing levels of responsibility, and was promoted to Vice President, Assistant General Counsel and Employment Team Leader, a role where she oversaw a team of five attorneys with responsibility for employment law counseling and dispute resolution in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, and Latin America. Immediately prior to her current role, Patty served as Global Officer, HR Business Operations.  During her years with Marriott, she has supported major company transitions, including the MVW spin-off, the Starwood acquisition, multiple brand launches, the expansion of Marriott’s franchise portfolio as well as pandemic response and recovery. Patty’s extensive experience in law and HR, partnering with Marriott’s corporate disciplines and continent teams, has given her a global perspective.

Prior to joining Marriott, Patty was Associate General Counsel with Amtrak.  She began her career as a practicing attorney with the law firm, Venable, Baetjer and Howard, where she worked with large institutional clients in a variety of industry sectors including government contracting, financial services, education, hospitality, food service, and non-profit.  Patty also clerked for the Honorable Robert L. Karwacki of the Maryland Court of Appeals in Annapolis, Maryland.  Patty received her Juris Doctor from University of Maryland School of Law, where she served as an editor on the Maryland Law Review.  She received her Bachelor of Arts with General Honors and High Honors in English from the University of Maryland College Park.  Patty currently serves on the Board of Governors of the University of Maryland Alumni Association.  She is the mother of three, stepmother of three, and lives with her family in Maryland.

Michael D’Angelo is a labor and employment attorney and vice president of labor relations/operations for Hyatt Hotels Corporation. In this capacity, Michael leads Hyatt’s labor relations function for the Americas Region (US, Canada, Latin and South America) while overseeing the administration of the organization’s collective bargaining relationships and agreements, including the grievance process, arbitrations and litigation. Michael acts as chief spokesperson and negotiation team leader in major labor negotiations with direct oversight of the negotiation process. Michael serves as public relations spokesperson and liaison for media related inquiries and press releases for labor matters and negotiation issues. In addition, Michael is a member of Hyatt’s government relations and legislative oversight team.

Michael provides counsel to senior leaders on all labor and employee relations issues, including potential acquisitions, divestitures and new development projects. He also supports the day to day human resource and labor relations teams to achieve desired outcomes, and effectuate strategies that achieve business objectives using a collaborative and integrative approach.

Michael is a Trustee on numerous Taft-Hartley Employee Benefit Funds in New York and Florida, including Health & Welfare, Pension, Training, Scholarship and 401(k) funds. Michael also serves as Co-Chair of the Labor Relations Committee for the American Hotel and Lodging Association.  Michael is admitted to practice in New York and before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and U.S. District Courts for the Southern, Eastern and Northern Districts of New York as well as the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut.

Specialties: Labor and Management Relations, Employment Law, Employee Benefits Law, Arbitration, Litigation, Mediation and Dispute Resolution, Government Relations and Legislative Oversight

Dave DeLaRosa serves as a global strategic Human Resources Executive with extensive experience operating in diverse multi state and site environments with industries including hospitality, nightlife, live entertainment and retail. His expertise of 27 years varies from building and managing teams being large and heavily matrixed organizations as well as small, lean start up firms. Holding a strong reputation as a trusted thought leader, strategic partner and an agent of change he is an internal confident advisor to all levels of growing organizations. Supporting global businesses in fast paced, high performing growth mode he has led multiple levels of teams in enhancing systems integrations and company wide strategies and programming.

Dave currently serves as a Chief People Consultant and works with organizational teams to identify and evaluate future acquisitions, integrating people and driving culture initiatives seamlessly into the company’s portfolio. He has spent the past several months driving Positive Employee Relations in multiple locations.

Laura E. FitzRandolph is Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer for global restaurateur HMSHost, a world leader in creating dining for travel venues. Laura is responsible for overseeing all HR functions including associate and labor relations, talent acquisition and development, and total rewards for HMSHost’s 31,000+ associates across North America.

Laura joined HMSHost from global hotel management company Interstate Hotels & Resorts, where she was most recently EVP, Chief Human Resources Officer. Laura joined Interstate in 2006 and held roles focusing on talent acquisition, development and learning, compensation and benefits, associate and labor relations, and employment legal matters.

Prior to joining Interstate, Laura was Counsel in the labor and employment group of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP. Laura is a former Deputy Director of Correspondence in the White House Office of Scheduling and Advance, and served on the staff of United States Senator Alan Cranston.

Laura holds a B.A. in Political Science and Mass Communications from the University of California, Berkley, and a J.D. from The George Washington University Law School. She has been a panelist and speaker for hospitality conferences including Georgetown Lodging Summit, HR in Hospitality, and the Americas Lodging Investment Summit (ALIS).

For Luke, the road to founding Harri has been a long one, paved by a spirit of entrepreneurship and willingness to dive head first into new ventures. With over 25 restaurants between Australia and NYC, Luke’s first foray into the food industry was at the age of 22, when he opened the first Burger King franchise in Australia. From there, his success in the category grew. In 2002, he secured the Australian franchise rights for the wagamama Noodle Bar and, under his leadership, it was listed as one of Australia’s Top 100 Fastest Growing Companies for 3 consecutive years. With his primary base of operations now in New York since 2007, he dived head-first into developing restaurants in the world’s most competitive market and saw a great opportunity for technological disruption along the way. Now, with this extensive experience guiding him, he has developed Harri to solve the hospitality industry’s greatest challenges: finding, hiring and managing great talent.

Harri is an entirely new kind of software platform for HR and operations: Workforce OS. Broad in scope, narrow in vertical focus and deep in rich, industry-specific functionality as a result. Harri consolidates up to 30 fragmented point solutions into single, elegant, mobile first enterprise platform and massively streamlines the chore of daily operational challenges faced by employees, line managers and executives alike.

Amanda M. Fugazy, a member of Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP, is head of the firm’s Labor & Employment Law Group and co-head of the firm’s Hospitality Practice Group. As such, Ms. Fugazy represents businesses (both for-profit and not-for-profit) and executives in litigation, arbitration and mediation, and provides counseling and preventative education with regard to wage-hour compliance, discrimination, harassment, labor relations, leave laws, internal investigations, contracts, manuals, and severance agreements.

Ms. Fugazy is one of the most experienced practitioners in New York in the highly litigated area of wage and hour law, having litigated dozens of federal and state court cases involving claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act and the New York Labor Law. Because of her experience in this area, Ms. Fugazy was invited by the mediation office of the Federal Court for the Southern District of New York to teach on wage and hour laws, and has been named one of the “Top Women in Metro NY Foodservice & Hospitality” by Total Food Service magazine every year since 2017.

One of Ms. Fugazy’s strengths is valuing and resolving cases. As such, Ms. Fugazy also serves as a mediator, and has successfully resolved many cases privately and by appointment through the Federal Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York.

Ms. Fugazy also has extensive experience in developing and delivering custom tailored management and employee-training seminars, and is routinely asked to serve as guest speaker by trade groups on a variety of employment related topics, including, but not limited to, illegal harassment, hiring, disciplining, firing, exterritorial application of US employment laws, wage hour compliance, employment discrimination, interviewing, family medical leave, administering a collective bargaining agreement, and matters pertaining to unions.

Ms. Fugazy is admitted to practice in multiple jurisdictions, and received her J.D. from St. John’s University School of Law.

Ms. Fugazy is proud to serve on Executive Council of The Alumni Association for The George Washington University (B.A.) and on the Board of Trustees for Usdan Summer Camp for the Arts

Gregg Gilman, co-chair of the Labor + Employment Practice Group, advises businesses on all facets of labor and employment law. Representing businesses in the marketing and communications, hospitality, financial services, real estate and construction industries, among others, he solves immediate issues and establishes preventive measures to help minimize his clients’ future liability.

Gregg’s well-drafted employment and executive compensation agreements help businesses retain and incentivize key talent while protecting his clients’ confidential information and other business interests. He crafts policies and protocols to help clients avoid risk, particularly concerning wage and hour issues, reductions in force, and joint employer issues. He is also known for his cutting-edge, effective antiharassment and workplace sensitivity training, as well as for developing and implementing diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

Regarded as a leading advisor in employment crises, Gregg is exceptionally skilled in helping clients preserve their brands and reputations. He guides businesses through high-level sensitive investigations, terminations, allegations of harassment, and raiding and employee lift out matters. When labor and employment disputes have turned contentious, Gregg has achieved impressive results in federal and state courts and through arbitration and mediation. Highly regarded for his deep knowledge, Gregg has also been retained as an expert witness in labor and employment arbitrations.

Clients praise Gregg’s creative, practical and strategic approach, negotiating skills, and ability to resolve complicated issues. With more than 30 years of experience across industries and employment situations, it would be difficult to find an employment or labor-related challenge he has not successfully handled.

Willy Gonzalez is the Secretary -Treasurer for UNITE HERE Local 23. While Local 23 covers 12 states most of Willys organizing work has been in Texas.

Willy is the son of Cuban immigrants and grew up in Atlanta before moving to Miami. Growing up watching his father work in restaurants gave him a real understanding of the challenges hospitality workers face.

Willy began working for the Union over 24 years ago. After spending time in Texas working on a campaign for the union he decided to move there and build the union in Texas.  He has lead negotiations throughout all the major cities in Texas and has led the program that saw significant growth for the union in both Houston and Austin.

Michael Gray is Co-Client Affairs Partner for the Firm. He served as Co-Leader of the Firm’s global Labor & Employment practice until January 2020. Michael’s practice focuses on representing corporate clients with complex employment matters, including class action and multiplaintiff employment discrimination lawsuits, state law overtime class actions, FLSA collective actions, and trade secret and restrictive covenant matters. He represents employers throughout the U.S. in bench and jury trials, administrative hearings, arbitrations, and appellate courts in matters arising under federal and state antidiscrimination laws, the Fair Labor Standards Act, the FMLA, ERISA, labor management relations laws, and state law wrongful discharge claims. Michael also advises clients on preventive measures, including reviewing policies, counseling on disciplinary actions and investigations, negotiating severance agreements, and conducting employment practices reviews. Michael brings a creative, business-minded approach to problem-solving and litigation. In recognition by Chambers and Legal 500, clients praised him by stating “he’s the guy I want in front of the judge” and “quickly gets down to the nuts and bolts and gets people focused on what’s important — his approach is unique and he gets exceptional results . Michael was named one of the “Nation’s Most Powerful Employment Attorneys” by HR Executive magazine and Lawdragon for the last 10 years. He is a frequent speaker for the ABA’s Labor and Employment Section and is a member of the Advisory Board of The Cornell Institute for Hospitality Labor and Employment Relations and NYU Law’s Center for Labor and Employment Law. Michael also is a member of the Board of Directors of the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center and chair for the American Heart Association’s “Counsel for A Cause” event.

A partner at Hirschfeld Kraemer, Keith brings an informed strategic perspective on crisis management, client needs, business priorities and budgetary realities. His practice is focused on the full panoply of employment and labor law, including collective bargaining, employment litigation, internal investigations, training, crisis management and workplace violence prevention.  Keith’s decades-long experience in hospitality has culminated in his extensive representation of large Hotel Industry clients, most recently serving as lead spokesperson for a coordinated group of more than 40 hotels bargaining with UNITE HERE Local 11 in Los Angeles and Orange County.

Business growth is part of Keith’s legal DNA, a skill he nurtured over 17 years as Senior Vice President & Deputy General Counsel of Starwood Hotels & Resorts. In that role, he confronted a full range of global legal issues, from counterterrorism, natural disasters, diseases, and human trafficking to global litigation, crisis management and response, labor relations, international and domestic investigations, workplace violence prevention, and government affairs. Keith was instrumental in developing Starwood’s global crisis management program after 9/11 and he oversaw the Company’s worldwide safety and security team.  He also helped lead a team and developed the legal strategy that enabled Starwood to obtain the first Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) license to develop and open the first U.S.-branded hotel in an embargoed Cuba. Keith was a founding member of Starwood’s Corporate Diversity Council and Human Rights Council, and he developed and chaired the Company’s Workplace Violence Prevention Team.

Keith is the former Chair of the Board of REACH Prep, a Stamford, Connecticut-based organization dedicated to facilitating top independent school opportunities, and admission to and graduation from highly competitive colleges for gifted and economically challenged Latino and Black students. He holds a B.A., magna cum laude, from Tufts University, and earned his J.D. from New York University School of Law.

A family-oriented person, Keith enjoys traveling and spending quality time with his wife and two grown children. Having traveled to Cuba more than a dozen times, he remains enamored with the beauty, art, music, food, and architecture of the country as well as the incredible warmth and spirit of the Cuban people. Keith also is passionate about wine, good food, and sports (especially New York Giants football). A history buff, Keith enjoys reading non-fiction and is drawn particularly to the history of the American Civil War and has toured most of the major battlefields of that conflict.

Barry Hartstein serves as Co-Chair of Littler’s EEO and Diversity Practice and has earned a national reputation for his work; a career that includes more than 40 years of counseling and representing employers in a broad range of employment law matters. A significant focus of his practice involves representation of employers around the country in dealing with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, particularly systemic claims, including the resolution of such claims. He serves as Executive Editor of Littler’s Annual Report on EEOC Developments, which is in its thirteenth year of publication.  

For many years, Barry has served  in a national leadership role for the American Bar Association in its section devoted to labor and employment law focusing on EEO issues, including  previously serving as a management co-chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Committee. Barry has been an active member of the EEO Committee for over 40 years and continues to regularly interact with EEOC leadership, including EEOC Commissioners and the EEOC Chair and has worked with various District Directors and EEOC Regional Attorneys around the U.S.

Barry also has served  in numerous leadership roles for Cornell University’s ILR School. Founded as the School of Industrial and Labor Relations, the ILR School today is the world’s leading college focused on work, employment and labor issues.  Barry previously served  on the Dean’s Advisory Council and President of the Alumni Association, and in March 2011, Barry was awarded the Judge William B. Groat Alumni Award based on his contributions to the labor and employment field and service to the ILR School. Barry continues to serve in a leadership role at the ILR School and serves as an Advisory Board Member of the Scheinman Institute on Conflict Resolution, which is the first institute exclusively focused on the study and practice of workplace dispute resolution.

Barry has been honored based on his inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America, Chambers USA, Who’s Who Legal, and various other publications and has been inducted into the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers based on his contributions to the field.

Darren Hirsowitz holds the position of Senior Vice President & Chief Financial Officer at The Breakers Palm Beach, where he oversees consolidated financial reporting and analysis, treasury, and taxation for the 140-acre resort and its affiliated businesses such as One North Breakers Row (luxury residential apartments), Breakers West Country Club, and the company’s expanding commercial real estate portfolio.

An integral member of the organization’s executive group, Hirsowitz plays a crucial role in devising and implementing the company’s business strategy, including the development and administration of comprehensive employee well-being initiatives, compensation programs, and health & savings plans. These endeavors positively impact more than 2,300 team members, and Hirsowitz considers them to be among his most significant contributions to The Breakers.

In addition, this veteran resort executive spearheads the business analytics practice, which transforms information garnered from the resort’s proprietary enterprise data warehouse into comprehensive insights and analysis. This drives strategic decision-making and powers the seamless execution of fully integrated processes across the company’s digital ecosystem.

Originally from Boston, MA, and raised in West Palm Beach, FL, Hirsowitz earned dual bachelor’s and master’s degrees in accounting from the University of Florida. After graduation (2002), he began his career with Theory LLC, a contemporary fashion brand in New York City. In 2005, he obtained his certified public accountant (CPA) license and then joined The Breakers as a Financial Analysis Manager, advancing over the next 19 years through the finance department to his current role.

Beyond his professional pursuits, Hirsowitz is actively engaged in various organizations such as the Florida Institute of CFOs (FICFO), the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants (FICPA). He also serves as Treasurer on the board of the Palm Beach Chamber of Commerce and dedicates his time to championing social institutions in the community like Step Up For Students.

Outside of work and advocacy, Hirsowitz enjoys spending time outdoors, particularly boating and beach activities, alongside his wife and two children

Richard W. Hurd is Professor of Labor Studies Emeritus at the Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations (ILR). As a specialist on trade union strategy, he has been quoted widely in the national and international print and broadcast media on various labor issues. Hurd is co-editor of four scholarly books: International Handbook on Labour Unions, Rekindling the Movement, Organizing to Win, and Restoring the Promise of American Labor Law. His academic journal publications include, “Moving Beyond the Critical Synthesis: Does the Law Preclude a Future for U.S. Unions?,” “First Contract Arbitration and the Employee Free Choice Act: Multi-jurisdictional Evidence from Canada,” “Beyond Labor’s Brawl – Strategic Conundrums Await,” and “Neutrality Agreements: Innovative, Controversial and Labor’s Hope for the Future.” Hurd earned his Ph.D. in economics from Vanderbilt University, and is a former Brookings Institution economic policy fellow.

Harry C. Katz is the Jack Sheinkman Professor and Director of the Scheinman Institute on Conflict Resolution at the ILR School, Cornell University.  He is President of the International Labor and Employment Relations Association (ILERA) and a past president of the U.S. Labor and Employment Relations Association (LERA). Katz served as the Dean of the ILR School 2005-14 and Interim Provost, Cornell University (2014-15).   He received his PhD in economics from the University of California at Berkeley in 1977.  His major publications include Labor Relations in a Globalizing World (with Thomas Kochan and Alexander Colvin), ILR Press and Converging Divergences (with Owen Darbishire), ILR Press. Since 2006, Katz has been a member of the UAW Public Review Board.

Roger King is a highly regarded labor relations attorney, whose career spans more than 40 years, including serving as a partner with the Jones Day law firm. He now serves as Senior Labor and Employment counsel for HR Policy Association.

After graduating from Cornell University Law School, he was a Captain and Legal Services Officer in the United States Air Force, on the Staff of United States Senator Robert Taft, Jr. and, subsequently, was appointed as Professional Staff Counsel to the United States Senate Labor Committee.

Roger has testified before various Congressional Committees, is a fellow of the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers, and is a past president of the Ohio State Bar Association Labor and Employment Section.

He is a nationally recognized author/speaker on employment matters and has represented employers regarding labor and employment issues both before administrative agencies and in federal and state courts. He has represented the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the HR Policy Association (HRPA), the National Manufactures Association (NAM), the American Hospital Association (AHA), the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace (CDW), and the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) in federal courts regarding numerous labor law issues.

Roger specializes in labor and employment matters, collective bargaining, contract administration and representation campaigns. Roger represented the winning side as co[1]counsel in the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case known as Noel Canning, which successfully challenged President Obama’s authority to make recess appointments to the National Labor Relations Board.

Tashlin Lakhani is an Assistant Professor of Management and Organizations at the Nolan School of Hotel Administration in the SC Johnson College of Business at Cornell University. She received her PhD from the ILR School at Cornell University. She also holds a Master of Science in Industrial and Labor Relations from Cornell University, a Master of Industrial Relations from Queen’s University, and an Honors Bachelor of Business Administration with High Distinction from Wilfrid Laurier University. Prior to joining the faculty at Cornell University, Professor Lakhani was an Assistant Professor of Management and Human Resources in the Fisher College of Business at The Ohio State University.

Professor Lakhani’s research investigates the determinants of employment practices and job quality, with a particular emphasis on how firm ownership structures influence human resource investments and organizational outcomes. Her current work focuses on franchise businesses and the ways in which human resource practices and performance differ across franchisee-owned, company-owned, and independently owned operations in the hotel and restaurant industries. She has also examined human resource management in global networks and the outcomes of different labor union strategies. Her work has appeared in journals such as Organization Science, Industrial & Labor Relations Review, and the British Journal of Industrial Relations, as well as in book chapters and industry reports. She has also presented her research at leading academic and industry conferences.

Professor Lakhani has received several awards for her research, including the Seidman Prize at Cornell University, the Ralph Alexander Best Dissertation Award from the Academy of Management Human Resources Division, the Thomas A. Kochan and Stephen R. Sleigh Best Dissertation Award from the Labor and Employment Relations Association, and the Industry Studies Association Best Dissertation Award.

Professor Lakhani has also received individual and team grants for her research from various organizations including the Cornell Center for Hospitality Research, the Society for Human Resource Management, the Labor and Employment Relations Association, the Rockefeller Foundation, and the Russell Sage Foundation.

Holly Lawson is the Sr. Vice President of Human Resources of Noble House Hotels & Resorts.  She has eighteen years of hospitality experience including hotel operations, acquisitions and transitions, learning and organizational development, and human resources.  Her career began in hotel operations and led to human resources where she oversaw the Washington D.C. region for Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, eventually moving to Los Angeles and supporting the brand’s Southern California portfolio.  From there, she transitioned to be supporting human resources for their corporate environment as well as nightlife, restaurant and hotel operations in California and Florida.  Under Davidson Hospitality, Holly served for five years as corporate director of people & culture and assisted with the growth of Pivot Hotels & Resorts, their lifestyle & luxury operating division.  She is a graduate of Michigan State University in human resources with an emphasis in psychology.

Michael Maffie is Assistant Professor of labor and employment relations. His research looks at the relationship between technical and organizational change, with a focus on how digital infrastructure is changing the nature of work and employment. Primarily, he studies platform workers, such as Uber drivers, but also conducts research on conflict management, arbitration, and worker voice.

Rich is the President of the Hotel Trades Council, AFL-CIO, the union representing 40,000 workers in the hotel and gaming industries in New York and New Jersey.

During his 18 years with the Hotel Trades Council, Rich has distinguished himself as a fierce negotiator and advocate for workers.  He has negotiated hundreds of collective bargaining agreements with major hotel and casino chains, including as lead counsel in bargaining the union’s master NYC contract, valued at over 2.5 billion dollars per year. He oversees the union’s explosive growth in NJ and upstate NY, where the Hotel Trades Council doubled the number of union hotels and won the first ever state wide master contract in the hotel industry.  Rich was intimately involved in the union’s expansion into the gaming industry, including the drafting of the 2013 legislation that created new casino licenses in New York State, the organizing of virtually all of the operators in the state, and the negotiation of collective bargaining contracts with each of them. Rich is also a key executive overseeing the union’s political program, which has been successful in numerous statutory reforms on the state and municipal levels.

Before coming to the Hotel Trades Council in 2002, Rich practiced labor and employment law in New Jersey and New York. He fought cases in front of state and federal courts and before the National Labor Relations Board, the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission, and the Division of Human Rights.

Rich graduated Phi Betta Kappa from Rutgers College, earned a law degree from the University of Pennsylvania, and later received a Masters in Labor and Employment Law, with distinction, from Georgetown University. He was a long-time adjunct professor of Labor and Employment Law at CUNY.

Rich is the son of Polish and Brazilian immigrants and grew up in New Jersey.  He currently resides in Montclair with his wife Chanon and is the proud father of three daughters, Maria, Zoe, and Isabel.

As Senior Vice President, Human Resources – Americas, Nikki Massey oversees the people and talent functions for Hyatt’s Americas region.

Now a 25-year member of the Hyatt family, Nikki began her career at Hyatt Regency Cambridge in Massachusetts, where her first job was serving as a towel attendant in the hotel’s health club. She held several operational roles within the hotel before pursuing her passion for Human Resources. Nikki worked in hotel HR functions across North America for several years before joining Hyatt’s Chicago headquarters in 2012.

Nikki has played a critical role in developing Hyatt’s design thinking approach and rolling out the company’s purpose, to care for people to be their best. Prior to her current role, Nikki was responsible for global learning, culture, engagement and change management. Today, she spearheads efforts to continuously evolve Hyatt’s culture as the hotel and travel industries navigate recovery in a dynamic environment.

Nikki holds a bachelor’s degree in communications from Stonehill College in Easton, Massachusetts and a professional Human Resources certification. She is co-chair of the American Hotel & Lodging Association’s Human Resources Committee. Nikki and her husband reside in Chicago with her stepchildren and their rescue dog, Moxie.

Elizabeth McClean, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor in the Management and Organizations department within the Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University. She holds three degrees, including her Ph.D., from the Industrial and Labor Relations School at Cornell. She joined the Johnson College of Business as faculty in 2021 and prior to that was an Assistant Professor at the Eller College of Management at the University of Arizona. Prior to joining academia, she was a human capital consultant at Mercer.

Elizabeth is an expert on the topics of leading change, diversity, and strategic human resource management. Her primary area of research focuses on the antecedents and consequences of speaking up with ideas for change. Specifically, she partners with organizations to understand how leaders can create cultures of innovation where employees feel comfortable suggesting ideas for change and managers have the power to respond to them. She is particularly interested in the factors that impede organizations and managers from leveraging their employees’ ideas to drive innovation.

She also conducts research on gender in the workplace. Her work on voice examines how the consequences of speaking up differ for men versus women and how both can be successful at selling their ideas for change to managers. More broadly, her work explores how organizational policies and practices affect the experiences of women differently from men in regard to their access to positions of power, compensation, and the evaluation of their workplace contributions.

She frequently partners with organizations to help managers create innovative and inclusive cultures.

Katie McDermott serves as the Vice President of Human Resources for Aramark Correctional Services, the industry leader in food and commissary service focused on breaking the cycle of recidivism. Aramark operates in 19 countries with 257,000 team members worldwide.

Throughout her career and in her current role, Katie advises key business leaders to drive employee engagement, career and personal development, staffing strategies and enables a growth culture through Aramark’s greatest asset, its people.

A Philadelphia native, Katie received her BA in Psychology from St. Joseph’s University and resides in the suburbs with her husband and two children.

Liz McRee has 20 years of experience representing corporate clients in class action and complex employment litigation in state and federal courts across the country. She handles cases arising under state and federal wage and hour and antidiscrimination laws, including the Fair Labor Standards Act, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, and the Americans with Disabilities Act. Liz has extensive experience in wage and hour matters and has a strong record of defeating certification in class and collective actions. She is co-leader of the Firm’s Labor & Employment Practice.

In addition to representing employers in litigation, Liz advises corporate clients on a variety of labor and employment issues, including employee handbooks and alternative dispute resolution policies, investigations, counseling and discipline, wage and hour compliance, and covenants not to compete. She also has substantial experience advising clients on independent contractor classification issues and joint employment risk mitigation.

Liz was named a 2022 Midwest Trailblazer by The American Lawyer, and a 2021 Employment Law Trailblazer by The National Law Journal. She is a frequent speaker on class action and employment law topics. She is a former vice chair and chair of The Chicago Bar Association Labor & Employment Committee. She has been recognized for her work and recommended in The Legal 500. Liz is active in the Chicago community and serves on the board of directors of Family Focus, a nonprofit that promotes the well-being of children from birth by supporting and strengthening families in and with their communities.

For nearly 20 years, Cathy Miller has represented employers across the country in state and federal courts and in arbitrations, as well as before federal and state administrative bodies, in employment matters ranging from Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, to the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, and the National Labor Relations Act. A significant portion of her practice involves handling these disputes, as well as providing employment counselling, on behalf of restaurant companies. Cathy is well-versed in arbitration and the Federal Arbitration Act and regularly advises clients on the subject. She also counsels clients regarding recent changes in employment laws, working to ensure company compliance with handbooks, policies and procedures. Cathy also provides training on employment-related issues such as sexual harassment and arbitration.

Cathy attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where she earned both her BA and JD.

Alexander is an accomplished CEO of private equity and venture backed companies in hospitality and technology. He is currently Founder & CEO of Mogul Hotels & Residences, a venture backed company transforming hospitality through artificial intelligence, a Strategic Advisor to Kiwitech and on the Advisory Board of top U.S. hospitality schools Cornell (CIHLER) and California Polytechnic.

Alexander is the former CEO of Cachet Hotels, known for pioneering sustainable lifestyle hospitality across Asia, including China’s first Carbon neutral hotel. Under his leadership as CEO, developed lifestyle hotels and celebrity chef restaurants across the globe led by high performing, diverse management teams. Cachet raised several rounds of capital and was recognized as “Asia’s Up and Coming Management Team.”

Prior to Cachet, Alexander spent 15 years as a senior executive at publicly traded and PE backed Fortune 500 corporations. He reported to the CEOs of Hilton Worldwide, Caesars Entertainment and Ticketmaster, where he oversaw corporate development, business units and geographic markets. At Starwood Hotels, he was head of corporate strategy, spearheading turnarounds, brand, and product innovation. He was subsequently on the senior operating team at Hilton, where he managed a $2 billion food and beverage business, launched the Waldorf Astoria brand, and established its first spas and fitness division. At Caesars Entertainment he was Chief of Staff to the CEO & Chairperson and subsequently promoted to Head of Hospitality, spearheading developments including Nobu Hotel, Gordon Ramsay and BR Guest restaurants, Drais nightlife, and international expansion.

Alexander started his career in management consulting advising CEOs, Heads of State and International Organizations at Deloitte consulting and as a Partner at Accenture. He received his MBA from Harvard Business School where he was awarded a McArthur Fellowship and holds master’s and bachelor’s degrees from Queen’s University (Canada), where he was an Aga Khan Foundation Scholar. He has been named a Top 100 global hospitality executive, Canada’s top 10 international executives and twice received the City of Toronto Mayor’s Volunteer Creed.

Alexander is the author of Reimagining Hospitality: Building the AI Hotel of the Future (Simon & Schuster, 2024), Talent Disruption: People Are the Brands. Leveraging AI to Scale Human Capital (BEP Press, 2023). His thought leadership has been published by the Harvard Real Estate Review, Entrepreneur, Phocuswright, Queen’s Journal, the World Economic Forum (Davos) and the U.N.

Philip A. Miscimarra is the former Chairman of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Phil leads the firm’s NLRB special appeals practice and is co-leader of Morgan Lewis Workforce Change, which manages all employment, labor, benefits, and related issues arising from mergers, acquisitions, startups, workforce reductions, and other types of business restructuring. He represents clients on a wide range of labor and employment issues, with a focus on labor-management relations, business acquisitions and restructuring, and employment litigation. Phil is also a Senior Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and the Wharton Center for Human Resources.

Alan Momeyer is the Chief Human Resource Officer Emeritus of Loews Corporation, having retired in 2016. During his 36 years at Loews, Alan was responsible for the Human Resource function of this highly diversified New York-based financial conglomerate. Alan engaged with all Loews’s fully or partially owned subsidiaries, including Loews Hotels, CNA Insurance, Loews Theaters, Bulova Watch Company, CBS Television, Boardwalk Pipelines, Lorillard Tobacco, and Diamond Offshore Drilling.

Alan has spoken frequently at conferences on all aspects of the HR function, with particular emphasis on Employee Wellness, HR Branding, and Labor Relations.

While an Executive at Loews and a resident of New York City, Alan was actively involved on the Board of a variety of non-profit organizations. He was the Chairman of the Board of Community Access, to provide housing and counseling for the homeless mentally ill; Chairman of Just One Break (JOB), founded by Eleanor Roosevelt, to provide corporate employment opportunities for the physically disabled; Chairman of Inside Broadway, designed to stimulate New York public school children’s interest in the Broadway Theatre world; and currently as Chairman of JobsFirstNYC, a philanthropically funded intermediary created to assist the workforce development world in New York City too become more Employer-oriented.

After retirement, Alan created his blog “Hello Pension Goodbye Tension”, a guide to engaged living in retirement. His blog describes activities in travel, cooking school, biking, and entertaining. In addition, Alan is an Uber driver.

In 2018 Alan joined the Board of the Auguste Escoffier International institute of Culinary Arts, currently the largest culinary school in the country.

He has two grown children, Lily 33, living in the East Village and managing global sales for Mimeo, and Jack 31, living in San Francisco  and directing national sales for DoorDash.

Alan lives in the Chelsea neighborhood of New York City and he always will.

Derrick Morrow was named Area Vice President & General Manager of
Hyatt Regency Atlanta in March 2020.

Derrick was previously Area Vice President & General Manager of Hyatt
Regency Crystal City at Reagan National Airport. He also served as General
Manager of Hyatt Regency Tampa; Regional Vice President of Sales for
Hyatt’s Midwest Region; Director of Marketing at Hyatt Regency Chicago;
and in other sales leadership positions.

Derrick started his Hyatt career at Hyatt Regency Atlanta as Associate
Director of Sales in 1991.

Derrick has taken leadership roles in each of the communities he has served,
supporting local charities, forging partnerships and championing diversity,
equity and inclusion.

Derrick has been a national leader in Hyatt’s Change Starts Here initiative,
including the company’s commitment to support black-owned businesses.
Hyatt has pledged to make its suppliers look like the communities it serves,
and increase its black supplier base significantly by 2025. Hyatt Regency
Atlanta has been a leader in this effort, with more than $600,000 in new
contracts signed with minority-owned suppliers since 2020.

Derrick in 2022 was instrumental in launching Hyatt Regency Atlanta’s
Minority Vendor Showcase. The event connects minority-owned businesses
with Hyatt hotels, competitor hotels and other potential buyers, giving the
hotel’s minority-owned suppliers more opportunities to expand their
businesses, thrive and grow.

Derrick serves on the Executive Committee of the Atlanta Convention &
Visitors Bureau and the Boards of Directors of the Atlanta Sports Council,
the Georgia Hotel & Lodging Association, Atlanta’s Gateway Center and
other hospitality, business and community organizations.

Derrick is a native of Washington, D.C., and a graduate of Howard
University.

Peter N. Moss is a General Principal in the New York City, New York, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. Since graduating from Cornell and joining the firm in 1991, he has specialized in traditional labor matters in the hospitality industry.  Mr. Moss represents owners/operators of hotels, casinos, restaurants, concessionaires and culinary schools throughout the United States.  He is the co-chair of the Jackson Lewis Hotel Industry Group.

Mr. Moss focuses his practice on the provision of advice to hospitality employers including:

• Strategic planning and advice – creating and implementing labor relations strategies
• Buying and selling assets – navigating the due diligence process and negotiating purchase-sale/management/lease/loan agreements and other corporate transactions
• Collective bargaining – either “at the table” or “behind the scenes” on a local or nation-wide basis for single or multiple properties
• Contract administration – avoiding/responding to complaints/grievances as well as arbitration/mediation of disputes
• Managing labor disputes to minimize interference with operations
• Crisis management
• Preventative labor relations
• Corporate campaigns – developing corporate philosophies, communications and strategies for identifying and responding to a campaign
• Training
• Representation of employers before courts and administrative agencies such as the National Labor Relations Board
• Day-to-day advice and counseling.

He is a frequent speaker on topics such as alternative dispute resolution, preventive labor relations, effective management techniques, administering and negotiating collective bargaining agreements and technology in the workplace.

While attending law school, he was the founding Editor-in-Chief of the Albany Law Journal of Science and Technology from 1990 to 1991.

Diane Neville is the Chief People Officer for Shake Shack Enterprises. She joined the Shake Shack team in 2019 bringing over twenty years of human resource experience scaling teams to build foundational practices to enhance corporate brands. As the Chief People Officer, she is responsible for the national development and oversight of all human resources workforce strategies and functions. Neville has also held various human resource roles within such companies as P.F. Chang’s China Bistro, Grimaldi’s Coal Brick Oven Pizzeria, Inc., McKesson Corporation, Fender Musical Instruments, and AON.

Vanessa is the Executive Vice President of Strategic Development at Alliance Abroad, a J-1 visa sponsor designated by the U.S. State Department, also specialized in the TN visa Professionals and H-2B visa Seasonal Workers programs.

“Made in the world”, Vanessa holds both French and American citizenships with a multi-cultural personal background and extensive experience in Global Recruitment, Business & Relations, and Public Diplomacy. Vanessa has developed and implemented international hospitality talent hiring strategies, both in the USA and abroad, over the past 25 years.

Vanessa’s motto is: “It always seems impossible until it’s done”, Nelson Mandela.

Genell Parker serves as the Regional Vice President overseeing HR Field Operations for Hyatt Hotels across the United States and Canada. With a career spanning over three decades in the hospitality industry, Genell brings a wealth of experience and expertise to her role.

Genell’s journey with Hyatt began in February of 2023 through the acquisition of the Dream Hotel Group portfolio, where she previously led the Human Resources function.

Before joining Hyatt, Genell embarked on her hospitality career in theme park operations at Walt Disney Parks & Resorts over 30 years ago. It was during her tenure at Disney that Genell discovered her passion for creating a “magical” employment experience for her fellow “Cast Members”, leading her to transition into various HR roles within the Global Walt Disney Parks and Resorts HR Organization. Notably, she spent significant time supporting the U.S. Walt Disney Hotels and later the Global Marketing & Sales organization.

Following her impactful tenure at Disney, Genell served as the Head of People & Culture for Entertainment Cruises, where she continued to demonstrate her ability to shape exceptional organizational cultures. Subsequently, she joined Dream Hotel Group as the VP of Human Resources, further solidifying her reputation as a visionary HR leader.

Genell is known for her strategic partnership with executive leadership, designing and driving initiatives that enhance human capital and organizational cultures. Her leadership style is marked by innovation, collaboration, and a commitment to excellence.

Genell holds a bachelor’s degree in Organizational Communications from The University of Central Florida. Outside of her professional endeavors, Genell resides in Orlando, Florida, with her husband and their schnoodle dog, Macy.

Marlene Patrick-Cooper is the President of UNITEHERE! Local 23.  UNITEHERE! Local 23 represents over 20,000 hospitality workers within 12 states who work in the airport, food service, gaming and hotel industry. UNITEHERE! Local 23 has been one of the fastest growing affiliates within UNITEHERE International Union. Most of this growth occurred in the South. With the exception of Amtrak/Chicago, DC, Denver and New Mexico, all of these members reside in Right to Work states.

The child of a union operating engineer and leader, Marlene grew up in the South and was deeply rooted in community activism and union solidarity events.

Marlene’s journey as a union leader within UNITEHERE began in the mid-1980’s as a rank and file committee in Las Vegas at Culinary Union Local 226. There she worked on various campaigns within her workplace before becoming a staff organizer with the Union.

Being able to relocate to the South to be near family and being able to organize, train and develop leaders in Right to Work States has been blessing.

David R. Rothfeld, a member of Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP, leads the firm’s traditional labor law practice and specializes in the representation of management in negotiating collective bargaining agreements. In this capacity, Mr. Rothfeld serves as Chief Labor negotiator for the Hotel Association of New York City, Inc., and negotiates initial opening and renewal collective bargaining agreements for all types of businesses, including, hotels, restaurants and gaming facilities.

Mr. Rothfeld also provides his management clients:

• Representation at grievance and arbitration proceedings;
• Advice on contract interpretation and compliance;
• Representation before the National Labor Relations Board, in representation proceedings and unfair labor practice proceedings;
• Counsel on a wide range of employment issues, encompassing compliance with applicable local, state and federal employment discrimination, labor, wage-hour and employee benefits laws and regulations.

Additionally, Mr. Rothfeld has conducted numerous seminars for employers, industry groups and trade associations on various labor and employment issues, such as Covid implications, Americans with Disabilities Act, harassment and current workplace issues such as employee discipline, employee privacy and workplace violence. Mr. Rothfeld serves as counsel to Taft-Hartley Pension and Welfare Funds as well.

Mr. Rothfeld represents clients in a myriad of different businesses, with a concentration in the hospitality field, including hotels, restaurants, clubs, catering and gaming facilities. He also represents employers in other industries such as real estate, manufacturing, service industries, schools and not-for-profit organizations.

Mr. Rothfeld is a board member of the Cornell Institute for Hospitality and Labor Relations, and is a frequent participant at Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration Round Tables as well as the Law School’s Labor and Employment Law Round Table.  He has been selected by his peers to be included in the The Best Lawyers in America in the practice areas of Employment Law, Management and Labor Law and Management.  He has also been selected as a “Super Lawyer” for the New York Metropolitan area.

Carlyn Sanchez joined Noble House in 2011 as Director of Human Resources at The Edgewater Hotel and transitioned to the corporate team in 2021. Her current role provides overall HR support, focusing on unifying resources to our growing collection of properties. Beginning her career in Hawaii, Carlyn fell in love with providing memorable experiences to guests and a meaningful employment journey for team members. Majoring in International Cultural Studies- Communications at Brigham Young University-Hawaii provided a foundation for respecting and serving team members today. Carlyn’s experience encompasses recruiting, payroll, labor relations, contract bargaining, employee relations, benefits administration, safety programming, and wellness initiatives. Embracing a work/life balance, Carlyn enjoys dancing, exploring Washington lakes on a paddleboard with her miniature schnauzer, Max, or playing in the ocean with her son, Isaiah.

Ruth L. Seroussi represents clients in federal and state courts, and in the arbitral and administrative forums. During her more than 20 years of practice Ruth has guided California and nationwide employers in the mortgage lending, retail, apparel, manufacturing, hospitality, real estate, health care and entertainment industries in all aspects of employee relations, including providing advice and counsel on day-to-day personnel issues, preparing employment policies and handbooks, negotiating and preparing employment, severance, non-disclosure and arbitration agreements, training managers and supervisors on discrimination and harassment issues, and defending employers in discrimination, wrongful termination, harassment, retaliation, wage and hour, unfair competition and misappropriation of trade secret matters, as well as against charges before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, Department of Labor, Department of Labor Standards and Enforcement and the Employment Development Department. Additionally, she has extensive experience representing employers in wage and hour class actions and California’s unfair competition laws, as well as in general business litigation matters.

Ruth serves as an Advisory Board member for the Cornell Institute for Hospitality Labor & Employment Relations (CIHLER). Additionally, she is President of Venice Arts’ Board of Directors, Secretary of the Friends of Coeur D’Alene Elementary School’s Booster Club, and is a member of the Venice Chamber of Commerce Education Committee.

Ruth also serves as a board member for various other non-profit organizations and coaches AYSO soccer. She is a licensed real estate broker in the State of California and a member of the California Association of Realtors. Ruth has also published articles, spoken at a number of conferences throughout the United States and served on panels concerning hospitality, human resources, labor and employment issues.

Ruth earned her J.D. at UCLA School of Law, where she was editor of the Environmental Law Journal and her B.S. in Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University. She is admitted to practice before the United States District Court for the Central, Northern, Southern and Eastern Districts of California and the U.S Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.

Ruth lives in Venice with her husband Mike, sons Holden and Dylan, and dog Bianca. She is an active traveler, hiker and outdoor enthusiast.

Anita Seth is the President of UNITE HERE Local 8, which represents food service, airport and hospitality workers in Washington and Oregon.  She has organized with UNITE HERE for 24 years.  For most of that time, she worked with the Union’s locals and associated community organizations in Connecticut, including leading the decades-long fight for a graduate workers’ union at Yale University.  She received her PhD in history from Yale in 2012.  

 Prior to her work with UNITE HERE, she organized on issues related to nuclear disarmament, environmental justice, and prison abolition, including collaborations with grassroots organizations in Russia and India.  

Övül Sezer is an assistant professor of management and organizations. Her research focuses on impression (mis)management—the mistakes we make when we want to impress others. We all think we know how to make a positive impression, and we can easily spot the mistakes others make, but when it comes to our own missteps, we tend to be blithely oblivious. Sezer identifies these mistakes and investigates how we can better navigate our social world. How can we signal that we are both competent and likable? How can we brag wisely? How can we give valuable feedback in a way that strengthens our relationships rather than harming them? How can we network less awkwardly? Her research identifies useful strategies for making better impressions.

Sezer’s research has been featured in top management and psychology journals including the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Harvard Business Review and covered in leading media outlets including New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post.

David Sherwyn (BS, JD, Cornell University) is the John and Melissa Ceriale Professor of Hospitality Human Resources and a Professor of Law at Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration. In addition, he is the director of the Cornell Institute for Hospitality Labor and Employment Relations. Dave is also a research fellow at the Center for Labor and Employment Law at New York University’s School of Law and of counsel to the law firm of Stokes, Wagner. From 2006-2009, Dave was the director of the Center for Hospitality Research. Prior to joining the School of Hotel Administration, Dave practiced management-side labor and employment law for six years. Dave has published articles in, among others, the Northwestern Law Review, Stanford Law Review, UC Hasting Law Journal, Indiana Law Journal, Berkeley Journal of Labor and Employment Law, Fordham Law Review, University of Pennsylvania Labor and Employment Law Journal, and the Cornell Hospitality Quarterly. In the fall of each year, Dave teaches HA 3870: Business and Hospitality Law, a required class with more than 200 students. Each spring, Dave teaches HA 4810/ILR 4060: Labor Relations in the Hospitality Industry—a class co-taught and co-listed with Cornell’s Industrial and Labor Relations (ILR) School. In his 17 years as a faculty member, Dave has received 15 Hotel School Teacher of the Year awards. In 2014 he was named a Stephan H. Weiss Presidential Fellow—the most prestigious teaching award at Cornell University. In 2002, Dave conceived of, organized, and hosted the Center for Hospitality Research’s first hospitality industry roundtable. Since that time, Dave has hosted more than 20 roundtables. Because of the success of the Labor and Employment Law Roundtable, the School of Hotel Administration’s centers and institutes now host roundtables in each of the disciplines that are represented in the school.

Anand Singh is President of UNITE HERE Local 2, representing over 13,000 hospitality workers in San Francisco and San Mateo counties.

Shortly after graduating from UC Berkeley in 2002, Singh attended an AFL-CIO organizing training, where he met worker-leaders who reminded him of his parents – immigrants from Bihar, India – and who inspired him to pursue a career in the labor movement.

Singh worked initially as a community organizer before joining Local 2 as the organizer of the Mark Hopkins Hotel ahead of the 53 day strike and lock-out of 2004. From 2013-15, Singh led the local’s food service division through successful strikes at the Giants’ ballpark and San Francisco Intl Airport. He was elected President in 2015, the first in Local 2’s history to be a person of color. Singh led the union during a 2018 contract fight with Marriott, when nearly 2,500 Local 2 members went on strike at seven Marriott hotels, winning groundbreaking contracts under the slogan “One Job Should Be Enough.”

Peter Slatin, who is blind, is the founder and president of Slatin Group LLC, which provides education and training to the hospitality industry on service to consumers with disabilities.

Slatin Group has trained thousands of hospitality employees across the U.S., through its in-person workshops and an e-learning course, Elements of Service, developed with strategic partner Slatin Media group. Clients include large convention center hotels and four and five-star and limited-service properties, as well as a significant West Coast airport authority.

A longtime advocate for disability rights, Peter is an award-winning journalist who writes on disability for Forbes.com and other major national publications. He has also written extensively on commercial real estate and architecture. He was editorial director of Real Capital Analytics, the leading data and research firm for commercial property. Peter is an adjunct instructor at New York University and developed a course on the intersection of hospitality and disability.

Peter is a director of Empire State Employment Resources for the Blind and Colorado Center for the Blind, an acclaimed school affiliated with the National Federation of the Blind. He has served on the boards of Lighthouse Guild. He has spoken internationally on universal design and access issues and has consulted for organizations such as the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Access Board. He holds an MA in Art History from Hunter College of the City University of New York and a BFA in painting from State University of New York at New Paltz.

Greg Talbot is the Senior Vice President and Associate General Counsel – Labor, Employment and Benefits for Marriott International, Inc.  Greg is responsible for managing the Law Department’s Labor, Employment and Benefits Group attorneys, partnering with the Company’s human resources and labor relations executives on human resources and labor strategy, and providing counsel and advice to the Company’s senior leaders on a broad range of labor and employment issues.  Greg also is responsible for the negotiation of the Company’s collective bargaining agreements and assisting managers with the administration of these agreements.

Prior to joining Marriott, in 2011, Greg was a partner in the Labor & Employment Law Practice Group at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, LLP where he counseled employers on labor and employment law issues across a variety of industries and represented clients in federal and state courts, as well as in proceedings before the NLRB.  Greg joined Morgan Lewis as an associate in 1998, following a clerkship with the Honorable Michael D. Mason in the Circuit Court for Montgomery County, Maryland.  Before practicing law, Greg served as the Director of Admissions and Financial Aid, taught history, and coached baseball at Gonzaga College High School, in Washington, DC, from 1990-1997.

After graduating from The University of Notre Dame, Greg received his J.D. from The Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law.

Bruce is a Professor of Management at Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration. Since joining the faculty in 1992, he has taught courses in human resources management and leadership for undergraduate, graduate, executive, and online audiences throughout North America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and Asia. Bruce’s research examines a wide range of strategic and operational HR topics, including the impact of training initiatives, flexible HR systems, employee retention, employment law, and leadership. He has presented his work at numerous regional, national, and international conferences, and his research has been published in diverse outlets such as the Journal of Applied Psychology, the Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, and the University of Pennsylvania Journal of Labor and Employment Law. Bruce’s sponsors for research, consulting, and executive development have included Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, Hilton Worldwide, Marriott International, Mövenpick Hotels and Resorts, Blue Hill Farm, Hillstone Restaurant Group, Uno Chicago Grill, among others, and he has been cited in USA Today, the New York Times, Fast Company, Powder Magazine, the Orlando Sentinel, and other popular press outlets. Bruce is also the Editor of the Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, and serves as a Vice President for the International Network of Business and Management Journals.

Blase Viti is Bluecrew’s National Workforce Director and has worked exclusively in technology-driven staffing for over seven years. As the Workforce Director, Blase leads Bluecrew’s enterprise strategy and builds national workforce solutions for Bluecrew’s hospitality partners. Over the last seven years, Blase has built complex workforce solutions totaling over $1 billion in spending. Working on both the local and national levels, Blase has extensive experience matching talent resources to business needs, particularly in the technology and hospitality industries.

Blase is the President of the Chicago Arts in Partnership Junior Board, is a Midwestern Jesuit Fundraising committee member, and holds the F+B Chair for the Our Lady of Perpetual Help Men’s Club. Before starting his extensive career, Blase taught public speaking in Nairobi, Kenya. He earned his Master of Science in eCommerce from Dublin City University in Ireland and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Management at The Kelley School of Business at Indiana University. Blase recently had a daughter in August 2023 – Vivian A. Viti. He hopes her strong name will help propel her to board room one day and a career in HR!

Paul supported himself through seven years of college and law school at Cornell University as a bartender at several local bars. That, along with his love of food and travel, is what ultimately drew him to the hospitality industry as an attorney, and later as an Adjunct Professor at Cornell’s Hotel School.

Paul grew up living in the United States, Canada, Liberia and Kenya, before returning to the U.S. to attend Cornell starting in 1982. He then worked on a refugee camp in southern Sudan (now South Sudan) for three summers during college. Since graduating from law school in 1990, his practice has been devoted to labor and employment law, primarily representing hotel and restaurant management companies and owners. Paul’s international background gives him a unique and valuable perspective in the hospitality industry, which draws its strength from cultural and ethnic diversity. The practice of labor and employment law in the hospitality industry requires as much sociology and anthropology as it does classic legal training, and he remains a dedicated student of these disciplines.

He has extensive experience litigating labor and employment cases in federal and state court, private and public arbitration, and administrative agencies including the EEOC, USDOL, NLRB, and numerous state and municipal agencies. Wage & hour class and collective action litigation represents a growing percentage of this work. Paul spends as much time counseling his hospitality clients to avoid litigation as he spends aggressively representing their interests when claims are brought against them, focusing on training, leadership, compliance audits, and organizational design.  He designs and implements manager and employee training for clients throughout the United States on the subjects of discrimination, harassment, sexual harassment, retaliation, leadership and general workplace conduct.

He also counsels his clients in matters of traditional labor law, and represent their interests in union campaigns, collective bargaining, and related disputes. His labor practice extends outside the United States to include labor consulting in Canada, the Caribbean, and Central and South America.

Paul is honored to be an adjunct professor at the Cornell Hotel School, a position he has held since 1998. He teaches Hospitality Business Law, Employment Law for Managers (including discrimination, harassment and retaliation), and Labor Relations in the Hospitality Industry. The synergy between his law practice and his academic appointment the Cornell Hotel School – the premier hotel management program in the United States – is not only professionally enriching, but also makes him a more effective advocate for his clients.

Celeste Yeager maintains a vibrant labor and employment practice litigating and consulting on behalf of management regarding a variety of employment topics. She defends employers against labor and employment law claims, including helping federal contractors with compliance efforts. Celeste has prepared hundreds of AAPs and led dozens of audits, including both desk and on-site audits. She has worked with both public and private companies, including smaller operations and multi-state employers.

Her practice also includes consulting and litigating on behalf of clients on a range of HR and compliance issues, including:
• Title VII of the Civil Rights Act
• The Equal Pay Act
• The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
• The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
• Wrongful discharge

This broad experience allows Celeste to give practical, “real life” advice regarding the implementation of policies, procedures and affirmative action plans across the spectrum, from recruiting and obtaining applicant data through the termination of protected employees, helping to identify not only potential risks that could generate an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Charge, but could also create areas of underutilization or a red flag to the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP). Her goal in assisting clients is to add value to the process by taking each client’s unique business practicalities into consideration while placing the client in the best possible position to prevent and/or defend its employment decisions.