Event Details

Learn how to effectively handle an employees off-duty behavior including drug use, social media and criminal misconduct!

An employee’s off-duty behavior, bad or otherwise, may affect both the employee and employer’s reputation and standing in the community. In many cases, it may impact the employee’s job performance directly and the interests of the employer. But how do you measure this, and how do you take into account the degree of privacy an employee can rightfully expect? The world of social media increases the likelihood of these issues coming to the fore, but the underlying balance has always been there. Debra Weiss Ford, an attorney at Jackson Lewis in Portsmouth, New Hampshire joins us to talk about the collision of these competing interests. How should an employer handle drug use, including medical marijuana prescriptions, comments on social media regarding political or religious beliefs, and criminal misconduct? This is sure to be a lively discussion, and we’ll take on the social media context with some in-room cell phone polling questions.

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Presenter:

DEBRA WEISS FORD is Office Managing Principal of the Portsmouth, New Hampshire office of Jackson Lewis P.C. Ms. Ford has over 30 years of experience representing employers in litigation matters before the state and federal courts and administrative agencies. She also represents employers before the New Hampshire Commission for Human Rights, the Maine Human Rights Commission, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the New Hampshire Department of Labor, and the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination. 

Ms. Ford trains frequently in New England on issues related to employment law, including discrimination, wrongful discharge, reductions in force, termination issues, wage and hour issues, proper documentation, leaves of absence, and Title IX compliance. She regularly advises clients on employment-related matters. 

Ms. Ford received her B.A., magna cum laude, from Drew University in 1979 and her J.D. from Temple University of School of Law in 1982. She is an approved federal and state mediator. She is a member of the New Hampshire Bar Association, Labor and Employment Law Section, Massachusetts Bar Association, Maine Bar Association, American Bar Association, New Hampshire Trial Lawyers Association, American Arbitration Association, the American Board of Trial Advocates, and the National Association of College and University Attorneys. She is admitted to practice in the State of New Hampshire, Commonwealth of Massachusetts, State of Maine, United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire, United States District Court for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States Claims Court, and the Supreme Court of the United States. Ms. Ford was a member of the New Hampshire Board of Bar Examiners from 1993 to 2005. She was appointed by the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire to serve on the Merit Selection Panel to consider the reappointment of the incumbent magistrate. In 2003, she was appointed to serve on the Federal Court Advisory Committee. 

Ms. Ford is listed by Chambers as one of America’s Leading Lawyers for Business. She is the author of the New Hampshire chapter of Workplace Privacy, a legal reference book for managers and human resource professionals, published by the Thompson Publishing Group, a division of West Publications. Ms. Ford was elected as a Fellow to The College of Labor and Employment Lawyers in June 2006 and selected as a Fellow in The Trial Lawyer Honorary Society by the Litigation Counsel of America in 2014. She is named as New Hampshire’s Best Labor and Employment Lawyer by Business NH Magazine. She is listed in The Best Lawyers in America by Woodward White, Inc., and has been recognized by New England Super Lawyers as one of the top 50 women lawyers in New England and one of the top 100 lawyers in New England. She is listed in Top NH Lawyers in Labor and Employment in New Hampshire Magazine and has consistently been named the Best Lawyers’ Manchester Employment Law – Management Lawyer of the Year. She is also rated AV by Martindale-Hubbell. Ms. Ford has been named one of the “Leaders in their Field” in the Chambers USA Legal Guide since 2012. Ms. Ford is rated a “Top Rated Lawyer” by Lawyer Media and Martindale-Hubbell™. Ms. Ford serves as a board member for the Portsmouth Music Hall, and Seacoast Human Resources Association, and she is an emeritus board member of the New Hampshire SPCA.