Experience
Ms. Torres Wong practices labor and employment law on behalf of public sector and nonprofit employers. Her practice focuses on traditional labor relations, including collective bargaining, investigations, training and strategic preventative counseling. She regularly serves as chief labor negotiator, having gained extensive and valuable experience overseeing all aspects of labor and employment relations with most of the primary labor representatives in California. In collaboration with policy makers and elected officials, she has developed strategies to successfully negotiate a countless number of labor agreements in a concessionary environment, and has participated in mediation efforts resulting in successful settlement agreements. She has continuously worked with the City of Stockton advising them in their labor concession bargaining throughout the City’s bankruptcy proceedings. In addition to Stockton, current clients include the cities of Modesto, Benicia, Palo Alto, Berkeley, Cupertino, and Tracy, as well as San Benito County and the San Francisco Housing Authority. Ms. Torres Wong represents a number of nonprofits, including one of California’s largest community health centers, La Clínica de la Raza. She serves as a resource to clients on a variety of aspects related to Human Resource functions. Her comprehensive background in labor relations and human resources provides her with the ability to advise clients in addressing complex labor and employment issues.
Ms. Torres Wong joined the firm in 2007. Prior to joining Sloan Sakai, Ms. Torres Wong served as the Director of Personnel and Chief Negotiator for the County of Santa Cruz for twelve years, and as the Equal Employment/Americans with Disabilities Act Compliance officer for two years. During Ms. Torres Wong’s tenure in Santa Cruz she served as the chief negotiator for ten bargaining groups, including handling all closed session negotiation matters; directing all risk management matters related to tort claims, contract compliance, employee benefits, employee leaves (workers’ compensation, Americans with Disabilities Act, California Family Rights Act, Family Medical Leave Act); directing the County’s Department of Transportation drug testing program; monitoring workplace violence prevention programs; managing recruitment and selection processes in a civil service environment; and directing investigations and responses at the state, local and federal level to all Equal Employment Opportunity, Sexual Harassment and Americans With Disability Act complaints.