Robert C. Long is a widely-respected leader on the complex labor and employment issues that arise in the context of corporate transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, bankruptcy, downsizing, reorganization and turn-around work with troubled companies or industries. Bob is the founder of Littler Mendelson’s Business Restructuring Practice Group. He regularly works with corporate clients and private equity firms to guide them in structuring corporate transactions to minimize risk and maximize the value and success of those transactions from a labor, employment, and employee benefits perspective. This includes transaction planning, due diligence, deal documentation, re-negotiation of labor agreements and pre-and post-closing integration activities. Bob frequently collaborates with leading mergers and acquisitions corporate lawyers, accountants and management consultants on such engagements.
An experienced labor negotiator, Bob has represented management in more than 350 labor contract negotiations, often in the context of high-stakes first contracts or successor agreements involving a major restructuring of the labor-management relationship. He has served as chief negotiator in a number of national contract negotiations and represented multiemployer associations in their negotiation of industry-wide contracts. He has extensive experience with most of the country's largest unions and is widely respected by their leadership. Bob is well known to be an efficient and effective labor negotiator with an eye toward creative win-win solutions that serve both parties’ interests without the drama and acrimony that sometimes detracts from successful and collaborative collective bargaining. Bob also represents clients in labor arbitrations and ULP proceedings before the NLRB and regularly advises clients on compliance with the NLRA.
Bob has clients that range from small closely-held companies to Fortune 50 companies and leading multi-national corporations.
Prior to joining Littler in August 2003, Bob worked at a Chicago law firm for more than 24 years. He was a founder and co-chair of that firm's business restructuring labor and employment group.
Selected Matters
- Represented for over 35 years many of the country’s leading private equity firms in M&A in hundreds of transactions involving establishing platform investments, bolt-on transactions and exiting platform investments.
- Represented scores of Tier 1 auto suppliers in multiple UAW negotiations, usually in connection with significant corporate change (mergers and acquisitions, plant closings, plant relocations/consolidations, successor contracts).
- Represented the world’s largest steel company in national USW negotiations.
- Represents as special labor counsel for M&A and business restructuring activities several multinational corporations, each leaders in their industry.
- Represented the world’s largest air freight forwarder in multiple national Teamsters negotiations.
- Represented the country’s second largest LTL trucking company in national Teamsters negotiations as it spun off from the National Master Freight Agreement and negotiated its own national agreement.
- Represented the entire unionized car haul industry in national Teamsters negotiations, representing the multiemployer bargaining association.
- Chief Negotiator for five years for the Port Authority of New York/New Jersey.
- Chief Negotiator for five years for the City of Columbus, Ohio, assisting the City in becoming the first major city in the country to achieve a double triple A credit rating
- Represented multiple creditor’s committees in bankruptcy cases as special labor counsel involving collective bargaining agreements, multiemployer defined benefit pension plans and withdrawal liability.
- Advised multiple employers in establishing, maintaining and defending double breasted operations.
- Negotiated nationwide neutrality, access and labor peace agreements.
- Frequently represents the firm’s corporate clients in M&A and business restructuring planning and implementation.
- Has handled scores of high stakes interest arbitration proceedings in both the public and private sectors.
- Represented the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP), a leading nonprofit immigration advocacy organization in NYC, in their UAW first contract and multiple successor contract negotiations.