2026 Employment Law Conference

CBIA’s 2026 Employment Law Conference delivers practical, real-world guidance on the most pressing workplace challenges facing employers today—from compliance risks and employee relations to emerging legal issues around AI and employee expression. 

This year’s program dives into complex topics like drug and alcohol policies, including when testing is appropriate, how to manage impairment in the workplace, and how Connecticut marijuana laws intersect with federal regulations.

Attendees will also gain a clearer understanding of employers’ responsibilities around disability accommodations related to addiction and prescription drug use. 

We’ll explore wage and hour compliance, breaking down common mistakes that lead to costly violations and helping you navigate evolving requirements like wage transparency laws.

Sessions will also examine how to manage sensitive workplace dynamics involving speech, politics, and religion—balancing employee rights with organizational policies while maintaining a respectful workplace culture. 

As artificial intelligence continues to reshape the workplace, our experts will walk through both the opportunities and legal risks associated with AI tools in hiring, decision-making, and operations—highlighting steps employers can take now to reduce future exposure. 

The program also provides practical guidance on handling discipline and terminations, with clear strategies for documentation, performance management, and minimizing legal risk throughout the process. 

And, as always, don’t miss the opportunity to connect and network with your peers from across the state.

Agenda

8 am | Networking Breakfast 

9 am | Opening Remarks 

• Diane Mokriski, HR Counsel, CBIA  
• Abby Warren, Partner, Robinson+Cole 

9:10 am | Discipline & Terminations Done Right 

• Rachel Kushel, Partner, Robinson+Cole 
• Abby Warren   

Managing performance issues and employment separations requires careful planning, clear documentation, and a solid understanding of legal requirements. This session outlines best practices for addressing employee performance issues as they occur. What are the pros and cons of using a PIP? When might it be viewed as a pretext for discrimination? What types of documentation must be provided to the employee? What are the key issues to remember if you decide to terminate? Attendees will leave with a practical roadmap for handling discipline and terminations in a way that reduces risk and supports defensible outcomes. 

10:10 am | AI in the Workplace: Understanding the Legal Risks

Your employees and managers are using AI to monitor employee conduct, make hiring and promotion decisions, draft contracts, and answer questions about strategy and internal processes. This session explores how AI tools are being used and the potential for bias or discrimination that may arise from those systems. We’ll also address increasingly common legal pitfalls, like the unintended consequences of using a poorly done AI-drafted contract, or the loss of crucial confidentiality due to the use of prompts. Finally, we’ll review Connecticut’s new legal framework governing AI in employment decisions and employee monitoring.

11:10 am | Networking Break 

11:30 am | Drug & Alcohol Policies in Practice

• Amy Markim, Shareholder, O’Sullivan McCormack Jensen & Bliss

When employee impairment becomes a workplace issue, employers are left navigating difficult judgment calls with significant legal and safety implications. This session focuses on two crucial issues: drug testing and disability accommodations. We’ll walk you through the basic rules on drug and alcohol testing: when it’s allowed, when it’s required, and when it might be better to forego it entirely. We’ll explain how Connecticut’s laws on recreational and medicinal marijuana intersect with federal regulations. And we’ll discuss the scope of an employer’s duty to accommodate drug and alcohol addiction as well as prescription drug use.

12:15 pm | Networking Lunch  

1:15 pm | Implementing an Empathic, Effective Response to Substance Misuse

• Ryan McGuigan, Founder & Lead Interventionist, Second Chance Interventions

Responding to drug and alcohol use in the workplace involves more than just legalities and termination decisions. In this session, we’ll go beyond what is legally required and discuss how employers can effectively and compassionately assist an employee struggling with substance misuse. We’ll provide clear cut strategies that consider both physical and mental health concerns. Don’t shoulder this responsibility on your own. Hear from the experts and learn how to help your business by helping your workers in a meaningful way. 

2 pm | Wage & Hour Compliance: Avoiding Unnecessary Risk 

• Patrick McHale, Partner, Kainen, Escalera & McHale 

Wage and hour violations are one of the most common—and expensive—compliance issues employers face, often arising from everyday practices rather than intentional misconduct. This session will focus on common errors that can have unintended and pricey consequences. Do you have to pay travel time for a weekend flight? What happens if an employee wants to forego their lunch break? Are you complying with Connecticut’s newly expanded wage transparency law? 

2:45 pm | Speech, Politics & Religion: The First Amendment at Work 

• Kevin Greene, Partner, Halloran Sage 
• Brittany Jones, Associate, Halloran Sage 

In today’s workplace, employee expression—whether on social media or in the workplace itself—can create complex legal challenges for employers. This session examines how to balance employee rights with organizational policies, including the limits of employer control over off-duty conduct. It also addresses religious accommodation and discrimination issues, with an emphasis on current enforcement trends and evolving expectations under federal and Connecticut law. You’ll leave with a clearer understanding of how to navigate sensitive situations involving speech, religion, and politics, and their impact on workplace culture. 

3:45 pm | Adjourn