Chris Mason is a Shareholder in the Firm's Scottsdale office and a member of the Labor & Employment practice group. Mr. Mason counsels employers and management on all aspects of labor and employment law, including collective bargaining and union organizing; restrictive covenants; employment discrimination; sexual harassment; whistleblowing; retaliation; wrongful termination; wage and hour compliance; personnel policies; reductions in force; trade secrets; duty of loyalty; drug and alcohol testing; and other state and federal laws, rules, and regulations.

He is also an experienced litigator, representing clients in Arizona, federal, and appellate courts, as well as before administrative agencies, including the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), the Department of Labor, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the Arizona Civil Rights Division, and the Department of Economic Security.

Chris Mason has extensive experience representing and advising employers in traditional labor matters, including in responding to:

• Union organizing campaigns
• Coordinating employer handling of union election (RC) petitions and processes
• Responding to strikes, picketing, and walk-outs
• Collective bargaining planning, negotiation, and agreement drafting
• Strategizing organizational development and planning to address union jurisdiction and union versus non-union ("double-breasted") operations
• Handling grievances and arbitrating labor disputes
• Litigating unfair labor practice (ULP) charges and other matters before the National Labor Relations Board on behalf of employers.

He has offered this type of support on behalf of employers in countless industries, spanning construction, mining, grocery, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, security services, ambulance, and medical support, among others, in numerous states across the country. Some of these states include Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.

Bar Admissions

• Arizona

Education

• UCLA School of Law, J.D., Order of the Coif
• University of California, Davis, B.A., Political Science & Sociology

• Secured summary judgment in an ERISA matter on behalf of the ERISA Plan, the Plan administrator, and the employer, in a heavily-contested dispute over benefits through an ERISA Top Hat Plan. Plaintiff contended that he was entitled to well over $500,000 pursuant to the Plan. After assisting the clients in navigating through the appropriate Plan administrative process, and after suit was filed in Federal District Court for the District of Arizona, successfully demonstrated to the Court that the Plan administrator's interpretation was reasonable and consistent with the Plan.
• After aggressive litigation, convinced a claimant and her counsel to voluntarily dismiss her claims of alleged discriminatory termination, without any payment to her.
• Defended client against claim of unfair labor practice termination.
• Defended client against a class action claim alleging violations of the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
• Secured ruling from federal district court authorizing taking of depositions of the state's attorneys and ruling that the attorney-client privilege did not apply to their involvement in the investigation of the underlying claims of discrimination. This prompted a quick resolution by the state.
• Advised client of legal issues concerning transition of workforce in connection with the sale of an operation valued in the hundreds of millions of dollars, and assisted in preparing sales contract terms concerning the workforce.
• Act in connection with criminal employment background checks and secured a settlement for a nominal amount for the client's benefit.
• Assisted client in preparing for collective bargaining negotiations, including preparation of facility and handling of possible strike contingency planning, and assisted in the crafting of new collective bargaining provisions.
• Assisted client with the handling of a delicate separation of a key executive and prepared a comprehensive severance agreement with a release and waiver of all potential claims.

• The Best Lawyers in America©, Employment Law - Management and Litigation (2020 - 2025)
• Southwest Super Lawyers Rising Stars® (2012)

• Legal challenges employers should expect in wake of COVID-19
• Workplace Weed: Now that recreational marijuana is legal in Arizona, users should know their reefer rights while on the job
• Minimum Wage and Tip-Pooling
• Legal Tips to Reduce the Risk of Harassment in the Workplace
• What Arizona employers need to know about immigration verification
• Employment law tips for lawful tipping in Arizona
• Implementing Effective Sexual Harassment Policies in the Workplace
• Master-Crafting Your Employee Handbook
• Silence is Golden - NLRB Affirms Employer Restrictions on Employee Discussions with Media
• #ArizonaRestaurantWeek Labor and Employment Law Series - Restaurant Employers: Protected Leave Rights (Blog 5 of 5)
• #ArizonaRestaurantWeek Labor and Employment Law Series - Restaurant Employers: Wage and Hour Laws (Blog 4 of 5)
• #ArizonaRestaurantWeek Labor and Employment Law Series - Restaurant Employers: Anti-Harassement (Blog 3 of 5)
• #ArizonaRestaurantWeek Labor and Employment Law Series - Restaurant Employers: Immigration Law Compliance (Blog 2 of 5)
• #ArizonaRestaurantWeek Labor and Employment Law Series - Restaurant Employers: Employee Tipping (Blog 1 of 5)
• To Withhold or not Withhold - the Risk of Wage Withholdings
• E-Verify Now With Possible Second Shutdown Looming
• Proposed Overtime Rule Will Not Go Into Effect December 1, 2016
• Is Your Business Ready for the New Minimum Wage Increase?
• Doubling Down on Employee Salaries: The U.S. Department of Labor More Than Doubles the Mandatory Minimum Salary Requirement for Most Exempt Employees
• DOL's Wage and Hour Division Refines Joint Employment under the Fair Labor Standards Act and the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act
• Sexual Harassment in the Workplace
• Misperception of Ownership: Who Really Owns a Business' Social Media Accounts?
• Who Owns a Company’s Social Media Accounts?
• National Labor Relations Board Publishes Final Rule Significantly Expanding Definition of Joint Employer
• Chris Mason, Speaker at the Energy Bar Association’s Virtual 2020 Northeast Chapter Annual Meeting
• Chris Mason, Presenter at the Arizona Industry Liaison Group
• Chris Mason, Presenter at the Scottsdale Chamber of Commerce
• Chris Mason, Presenter at the Arizona Small Business Association
• Chris Mason, Co-Presenter at Jennings Strouss
• Chris Mason, Presenter at the Mesa Chamber of Commerce
• Chris Mason, Speaker at the Arizona Industry Liaison Group
• Chris Mason, Presenter at the Arizona Industry Liaison Group
• Buchalter Labor & Employment 2023 Seminar
• Webinar: Labor and Employment Webinar: Vaccination Mandates and the Workplace Implications of Prop. 207
• Webinar: Restarting Your Business after COVID-19; Managing Employment, Liability and Regulatory Risks
• Webinar: The Employment Law Double-Dose
• Webinar: What Should Businesses Do?
• Webinar: Managing Employment and Other Business Needs During a Pandemic
• Buchalter’s Labor & Employment 2023 Webinar
• President Biden Targets Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation Discrimination Through Executive Order
• The Coming Storm: Employer Challenges in the COVID-19 Wake