Sarah Wimberly has a broad employment and labor law practice and routinely counsels clients on day-to-day employment issues, drafts and reviews policies, conducts management training, investigates employee complaints and counsels clients on them, defends discrimination, whistleblower and other charges and complaints before administrative agencies, mediates and arbitrates grievances, and litigates labor and employment cases in state and federal court.
Sarah's practice has a national scope. In her almost 15 years of practice, she has handled cases in 20 different states and administrative charges and complaints in virtually every state in the Union. Sarah is the editor of the Leaves of Absence Chapter of the firm's Sourcebook. She is also a regular speaker on topics such as litigation avoidance, sexual harassment, discrimination, leaves of absence, and accommodating disabilities.
Sarah focuses her practice to a large extent on the airline industry. She frequently counsels the firm's air carrier clients on issues such as absence management and administration, accommodating disabilities, complicated or sensitive harassment and discrimination complaints and reductions in force. She also handles a wide variety of administrative actions such as EEOC charges, FAA civil complaints and whistleblower actions. Additionally, Sarah has defended air carriers in state and federal courts in employment and RLA litigation. She also routinely handles mediation and arbitration of employee grievances, particularly those involving discipline and discharge.
Sarah serves as the Secretary and is on the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors for Genesis Shelter (2001-present), an emergency transitional home for homeless newborns and their families, and is an active member of Peachtree Road United Methodist Church.
Recent Experience
- Securing summary judgment for an airline against the EEOC in a gender-harassment claim, which forced the EEOC to dismiss voluntarily a second, related lawsuit asserting retaliation
- Securing dismissal of two sexual-orientation discrimination and harassment complaints raised by two pilots before a local human rights commission after a public hearing with significant media coverage
- Ensuring denial of grievance filed by captain over discharge for alleged date-rape of first officer and attempted assault of flight attendant on overnight trips
Recent Publications
- Manage Your Employees or Get Out of the Way (co-authored with partner Chad A. Shultz)
Honors and Awards
- AV® Preeminent Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell