Mark C. Knoth

Mark C. Knoth is a member of Kerr, Russell and Weber PLC and leads the firm's Labor and Employment Practice Group. Mr. Knoth counsels and advises business owners, managers and human resources professionals in employment law and labor relations matters. 

Over his many years of experience in employment and labor law, Mr. Knoth has developed a broad range of expertise in areas such as federal and state civil rights and anti-discrimination laws; employee discipline; wage and hour; overtime; employee medical leaves; reasonable accommodations; veteran issues; picketing; secondary boycotts; voluntary and involuntary reductions in force; drug testing; unemployment compensation; affirmative action; and union organizing campaigns among others.  Mr. Knoth drafts employee policies, handbooks, contracts, and covenants not to compete and investigates threats of violence, allegations of harassment, and other employee misconduct.
 
Mr. Knoth has negotiated concessionary collective bargaining agreements and tried numerous discharge and contract interpretation grievances in labor arbitration.  He has also successfully represented employers in hearings, trials, and appeals in federal and state courts, on a variety of employment law claims including, race, sex and national origin cases alleging discrimination, retaliation and harassment under Title VII; disability and failure to accommodate claims under the ADA; age discrimination claims under the ADEA; retaliation and failure to reinstate claims under the FMLA; claims alleging failure to pay wages and overtime under the FLSA; employee benefit claims under ERISA; breach of covenants not to compete claims; wrongful termination claims and various other State and Federal claims. 

Mr. Knoth has appeared before the NLRB and the Michigan Employment Relations Commission on behalf of employers facing unfair labor practice charges, at unit clarification hearings and at union certification elections.  He has also represented employers in investigations conducted by the EEOC, the Michigan Department of Civil Rights, the Michigan and US Departments of Labor, and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs.

LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell, one of the oldest nationally recognized directories of attorneys has given Mr. Knoth its highest possible rating of AV indicating preeminence in his legal ability and ethical standards.

As a special mediator for the EEOC, Mr. Knoth facilitates the resolution of charges of discrimination brought against employers.  Mr. Knoth also volunteers his time and legal expertise to a number of non-profit charitable organizations.  He sits on the Board of Directors of the Northville Educational Foundation which raises money in support of the Northville, Michigan Public Schools.  He is a member of the Labor and Employment Law Sections of the Michigan and American Bar Associations; the Oakland County Bar Association; and the Society of Human Resources Management among other organizations.

Mr. Knoth shares his knowledge of employment and labor law when speaking to employer groups and training HR managers on a variety of employment related legal topics.  He is a contributing editor to a nationally recognized publication: The Fair Labor Standards Act, 2006 Cumulative Supplement (BNA; 2006).   He also authored and co- authored a number of articles on employment law including "Workplace Privacy Issues", Facts and Figures, (Feb. 2002, NALA).  Several decisions in cases in which he successfully represented employers are published.
 
A graduate of James Madison College at Michigan State University, Mr. Knoth earned a B.A. in International Relations.  He obtained his law degree from the University of Detroit where he was a member of the Michigan Business Law Journal and participated in the Urban Law Clinic.  Mr. Knoth is literate in German and represents several European-based clients.