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José Benítez-Mier is a member in the Labor and Employment Law Department. He joined O'Neill & Borges LLC in 1996. Mr. Benítez-Mier advises and represents employers in a broad range of employment law matters, including employment terminations, reductions-in-force and reorganizations, mass lay-offs and closing of operations, wage and hour, privacy rights, equal employment, drug and alcohol testing, medical leave coordination, covenants not to compete, progressive discipline and internal investigations of sexual harassment and other workplace grievances. Mr. Benítez-Mier also offers management training and seminars in all of these areas.
From 1997 to 2000, Mr. Benítez-Mier counseled the Puerto Rico Department of Education in the creation, drafting and implementation of its drug testing program and its administrative regulations and procedures.
In addition, Mr. Benítez-Mier counsels employers in all employment-related visa and business immigration matters. His practice concentrates in the preparation of non-immigrant employment visa petitions. His immigration practice also includes procuring employment-based permanent residency and naturalization petitions.
Mr. Benítez-Mier has also defended employers in state and federal courts in connection with claims of wage and hour, libel and defamation, privacy rights, harassment and employment discrimination, wrongful discharge, medical leaves, drug testing, WARN, USERRA, and other employment related claims. Representative cases include: Irving Cortez v. AT&T/Centennial de Puerto Rico, 2010 U.S. Dist. 126685 (D.P.R. 2010) (Defended employer from religious discrimination claim filed by a Satanist against his employer.) Pagán-Maldonado v. Centennial Puerto Rico Communication Corp., 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 114215 (D. P. R.)(Defended employer in gender and age discrimination complaint); Díaz-Figueroa v. RICOH Puerto Rico, Inc., 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 93828 (D. P. R.)(Sexual harassment; age and pregnancy discrimination); Del Pilar Salgado v. Abbott Laboratories, 2007 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 81973 (D. P. R.)(sexual harassment; hostile work environment); Adames-Millán v. Centennial Communs. Corp., 500 F. Supp. 2d 14 (D.P.R. 2007)(WARN); Adames-Millán v. Centennial Communs. Corp., 500 F. Supp. 2d 6 (D.P.R. 2007)(WARN and Law No. 80); Berríos-Cintrón v. Capitol Foods, Inc., 497 F. Supp. 2d 266 (D.P.R. 2007)(disability discrimination and COBRA); Bermúdez-Vázquez v. Centennial de P.R., 278 F. Supp. 2d 174 (D.P.R.) aff'd., 2004 U.S. App. LEXIS 9552 (1st Cir. 2004)(race discrimination); Vélez del Valle v. Mobile Paints, 349 F. Supp. 2d 219 (D.P.R. 2004)(disability discrimination); Havercombe v. Dept. of Education of Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, 250 F. 3d 1 (1st Cir. 2001)(various types of discrimination).
Mr. Benítez-Mier is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and the Federal Bar Association. Since 2007, Mr. Benítez-Mier has presided over the Human Resources and Labor Legislation Committee of the Puerto Rico Manufacturers Association.
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