Jean E. Novak, a director at Strassburger McKenna Gutnick & Gefsky, is co-chair of the Employer-Employee Relations practice. She understands the need for practical, business-oriented solutions to labor and employment challenges. Her reputation among her clients and her fellow attorneys has earned her a Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Rating AV® Pre-eminent in the field of labor and employment law.
Through years of private and in-house practice, Professor Novak developed a practical, business-based approach to solving problems successfully for a wide-range of clients from heavy manufacturers and hospitals to tech companies and school districts. She has trained managers and owners on a variety of subjects including policy development, discrimination, and talent management trends, and she developed the firm’s seminar series addressing management challenges for successful growing businesses. She has litigated cases in the state and federal courts and represented clients before numerous agencies including the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the National Labor Relations Board, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance, the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Civil Rights, the U.S. and Pennsylvania Departments of Education, and the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission.
In addition to her administrative and litigation experience, Professor Novak has represented both businesses and executives in a variety of employment matters, including successful resolution of discrimination and overtime disputes. She has also successfully negotiated severance agreements and executive contracts.
As part of her commitment to training tomorrow’s leaders, Professor Novak has served as Distinguished Service Professor (Adjunct) at Duquesne University’s John F. Donahue Graduate School of Business where she has taught Ethical Decision Making. She has also been a guest lecturer at the University of Pittsburgh and at Chatham University.
Prior to attending law school, Professor Novak, who majored in finance as undergraduate and graduate, was a tax analyst for the West Virginia Department of Revenue where one of her duties was tracking domestic and international business trends.