Human Resources Management

Mary Thomas Scott, MBA/JD

Grand Island, NY

***@*******.*** - 716-***-****

Highly skilled Human Resources/Labor Relations Professional

WORK EXPERIENCE

Deputy Director, Labor Relations

County of Erie - Buffalo, NY - January 2012 to Present

Responsibilities

Provide labor and grievance direction for Erie County. Develop union labor strategies with bargaining units

and resolve grievances and labor issues within county. (4600 employees)

• Primary Resource: Primary resource for 24 Divisions/Departments regarding Labor Contract administration (8

bargaining Units). Issues: Discipline, accrual of benefits, subcontracting, workplace policies, absentee control,

overtime control

• Litigation: Primary litigator for discrimination defense and labor contract arbitrations (approx. 5/month)

• Labor Contract Negotiations: Second chair - labor contract negotiations; contribute to proposal design and

evaluate costs and application of contract proposals

• Change Management: Review and coordinate employment and labor relations policies across departments;

initiated inclusion and outreach between Labor Department and Union leadership to promote cooperative

relationship and reduce grievances

• Organizational Initiative: Developed a comprehensive case management database of all outstanding and

closed labor cases for County within first 2 months of hire

• Supervision: Supervise Administrative Assistant and Law Interns – directed and evaluated work assignments,

matched department priorities with work output

• Training: Designed and conducted 1st Line Supervisory training for County supervisors

Solo Practice-Employment/Labor Law

M Thomas Scott & Associates - Grand Island, NY - January 2009 to December 2011

Responsibilities

Solo practitioner in boutique law firm specializing in personnel, human resources, labor-management relations,

competitive contract negotiations, employment strategies, reductions in force (RIF), strategic planning,

succession planning, best practices in personnel management and management training.

• Clients: Manufacturing, automotive, trucking, consumer goods, services, medical devices, distribution and

fulfillment

• Core Competencies: Developed strategic human resources assessments for “C” level executives; counseled

on best practices for labor and employee relations, strategic planning and development and forensic labor

contract analysis.

• Union Relations: Consulted with management to optimize union-management relations leading to competitive

labor costs platforms and reductions in labor-management differences; counseled on union avoidance

strategies

Accomplishments

US Fulbright Scholar: Southern Federal University, Faculty of World Economics, Rostov-on-Don, Russian

Federation; MBA seminars: “International Leadership and Cross-Cultural Behaviors”, “Forensic Labor Contract

Analysis” (2009)

Skills Used

Litigation: Defended management in NLRA, EEO/Title VII, NYS DHR matters

o Admitted – New York, U.S. District Court (WDNY) & U.S. Court Appeals (2nd Cir.)

Director, Human Resoruces

City of Buffalo - Buffalo, NY - June 2007 to January 2009

Responsibilities

Challenged with developing a global labor contract strategy for 8 bargaining units (2600 employees). Assessed

costs and savings of proposals, negotiated (1st chair) with bargaining committees (AFSCME, IBT, PBA, IAFF),

evaluated counter proposals for corporate strategic alignment, and drove to settlement grounded in change

management and unfreezing the status quo.

• Contract Negotiations: First chair - negotiated and settled 4 contracts following 4-year State Control Board

imposed wage-freeze.

• Fiscal Accountability: Developed budget models used to evaluate contract proposals, accounted for targets

that met or exceeded NYS Fiscal Stability Board targets

Solo Practitioner

M Thomas Scott & Associates - Grand Island, NY - May 2003 to January 2007

Responsibilities

Legal consulting for small and medium businesses. Solo practitioner in boutique law firm specializing in

personnel, human resources, labor-management relations, competitive contract negotiations, employment

strategies, reductions in force (RIF), strategic planning, succession planning, best practices in personnel

management and management training.

• Clients: Manufacturing, automotive, trucking, consumer goods, services, medical devices, distribution and

fulfillment

• Core Competencies: Developed strategic human resources deployment assessments for “C” level

executives; counseled on best practices for labor and employee relations, strategic planning and development

and forensic labor contract analysis.

• Union Relations: Consulted with management to optimize union-management relations leading to competitive

labor costs platforms and reductions in labor-management differences; counseled on union avoidance

strategies

Skills Used

Litigation: Defended management in NLRA, EEO/Title VII, NYS DHR matters

o Admitted – New York, U.S. District Court (WDNY) & U.S. Court Appeals (2nd Cir.).

Director, Human Resources/Corporate Labor Counsel

WKI Holding Co. - Corning, NY - January 2001 to May 2003

Responsibilities

Responsible for mission/vision/values-based HR best practices for Supply Chain (3500 employees) in a Six

Sigma-driven environment. Drafted, designed and administered union strategy and employment policies,

succession planning and development, separation policies and practices, down-sizing and transition planning.

• Corporate Labor Counsel: Negotiated 7 labor agreements with total annualized labor cost savings of

$9.3 million (approx. 12%) including changes to compensation, health insurance plans and pension, work

assignment, scheduling, workplace practices, impact bargaining

• Litigation: Defended NLRB bad faith bargaining and employment discrimination claims

• Human Resource Management: Responsible for labor-management policies and practices at 8 manufacturing

and distribution centers and instituted positive change management strategies for labor compliance and

productivity increases.

• Supervision: Supervised 6 Human Resource Managers at manufacturing and distribution centers, directed

labor relations and personnel strategies, and developed supervisory training related to corporate workplace

policies (FMLA, ADA, RIFs, attendance, discipline)

EDUCATION

JD in Law

SUNY at Buffalo - Buffalo, NY

1983 to 1989

MSIA/MBA in Management

Carnegie Mellon Unive/Graduate School of Industrial Administration - Pittsburgh, PA

1980 to 1982

AWARDS

Robert J. Connelly Award for Trial Practice Excellence

CERTIFICATIONS

Six Sigma, Black Belt (Aveta Business Institute)

PUBLICATIONS

Baun, J. T. & Scott, M. T. "A New Look at Business Education" T+D. American Society

for Training and Development (ASTD): Alexandria, VA.

August 2010

Contact this candidate