Leah Stiegler is a member of the firm’s Labor and Employment and Litigation practice groups.
Leah strategically advises employers on compliance with employment laws and defends actions before agencies including the EEOC, DOL, and NLRB. Leah has substantial federal trial experience, conducts workplace and board training sessions, and guides managers through workplace investigations.
Leah has traveled the Mid-Atlantic region speaking about diversity and implicit bias. She has presented to many audiences, including front-line employees, upper-management, and Human Resources Professionals. During her sessions, Leah encourages the audience to consider the impact of their workplace conduct, engender civility, and work together to prevent harassment and discrimination.
Leah’s workplace training sessions cover topics such as workplace violence, FMLA/ADA and all employee medical leave or workers’ compensation concerns, FLSA/wage and hour obligations, documentation and discipline, performance reviews/PIPs, Form I-9 best practices, and addressing employee conduct on social media. In every case, Leah works with her clients to create a custom training program that will address their unique workforce situations.
In addition to public speaking, Leah works extensively with employers to develop employment contracts, workplace policies, and employee handbooks that suit specific company-specific needs.
Leah advises many civic and community clients including the Roanoke City Police Department’s Threat Assessment Task Force on employer liability in the face of workplace safety and security concerns. Leah also provides extensive counsel to non-profit organizations nationwide and takes on civil rights trials for prisoners in federal court.
Leah believes strongly in the value of youth athletics and is the head coach of “The Bosses,” a youth basketball team for girls in the City of Roanoke. Leah is Chair of the Board for Virginia Amateur Sports, Inc., a non-profit organization that promotes physical fitness and healthy lifestyles and runs the Virginia Commonwealth Games—the largest multi-sport festival held in Virginia each year.
Leah, a Virginia native, joined Woods Rogers after completing a judicial clerkship with the Honorable Lawrence R. Leonard, U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Eastern District of Virginia.
Affiliations
Virginia Bar Association
Federal Bar Association
Virginia Amateur Sports
Thought Leadership
Published Articles
Life happens at work. Are your employees discussing the George Floyd tragedy?, The Roanoke Times, June 5, 2020
Speak the Unspoken: Fighting Your Implicit Bias and Channeling Understanding, Opening Statement, Fall 2019
Subconscious Thoughts and Their Impact on the Workplace, Lynchburg Business, November/December 2018
Avoiding The Catch-22: Reforming the Renewable Fuel Standard to Protect Freshwater Resources and Promote Energy Independence, 48 University of Richmond Law Review 1063, 2014
Featured Posts
Storming the U.S. Capitol! Can you fire an employee for rioting? | January 11, 2021
FFCRA Update! Mandatory FFCRA Leave Stops on December 31, 2020 | December 22, 2020
Retaliation: “I know it when I see it!” But do you really? | November 16, 2020
DOL Revises FFCRA Regulations – Here we go again! (Coronavirus and the Law) | September 14, 2020
Virginia’s COVID-19 Workplace Safety Standards Are Effective NOW! (Coronavirus and the Law) | July 27, 2020
Virginia Adopts COVID-19 Workplace Safety Standards (Coronavirus and the Law) | July 16, 2020
Life happens at work. Are your employees discussing the George Floyd tragedy? | June 4, 2020
Virginia’s New Workplace Laws: Prepare Now or Risk Lawsuits Later | June 1, 2020
How to Reopen Your Business in 12 Steps (Coronavirus and the Law) | May 13, 2020
COVID-19 Employment Lawsuits Are Already Brewing (Coronavirus and the Law) | May 12, 2020
Speaking Engagements
Virginia Credit Union League | COVID-19 at Work: 2021 Legal Updates | January 26, 2021
CUPA-HR Virginia Chapter | CUPA-HR Virginia Legal Update | December 15, 2020
Virginia Society for Healthcare Human Resources Administration | Legal Update | October 21, 2020
Richmond SHRM | Virginia’s New Employment Laws | November 12, 2020
Virginia Credit Union League | Virginia’s Updated Workplace Standards & EFMLA | August 5, 2020
International Public Management Association for Human Resources - Virginia Chapter | Employee Leave Under FFCRA & 6 Steps to Take if an Employee Tests Positive | June 18, 2020
VACAP Human Resources Peer Group | COVID-19 – Returning to Work: Legal Issues Agencies Need to Consider | June 10, 2020
Bedford Area Chamber of Commerce | COVID-19 Webinar Series | April 24, 2020
Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police | 2020 New Chiefs/Deputy Chiefs Training School: FLSA, ADA, & FMLA | March 4, 2020
Richmond SHRM | 2020 Legal Update: Hot Topics and Practical Advice | February 20, 2020
VA Society for Healthcare Human Resources Administration | VaSHHRA Regional Event: HR Legal Update | October 9, 2019
IPMA-HR Virginia Chapter Regional Workshop | Strengthening Your Supervisory Skills in Employment Law | October 16, 2019
VASHRRA | Roanoke/Southwest Regional Event | October 18, 2019
Richmond SHRM | HR on Mock Trial: Romance Gone Wrong (Allegedly) | September 19, 2019
Council of Independent Colleges in Virginia | Hot Button Legal Issues in HR | May 22, 2019
Association of Government Accountants | Federal Employment Laws Every Leader Should Know | April 25, 2019
Lynchburg Regional Alliance Business Summit | Employment Law Updates | April 30, 2019
International Public Management Association for HR – Virginia Chapter | Hot Topics in Your Employee Handbook | March 12, 2019
International Public Management Association for HR – Virginia Chapter | Discrimination & Harassment in the #MeToo Era | March 12, 2019
Virginia Society of CPAs – Roanoke Chapter | Federal Laws Every Leader Should Know | January 24, 2019
Virginia Women's Conference | Valuing Diversity and Recognizing Implicit Bias | November 17, 2018
Virginia Employment Commission | FMLA, ADA, Workers’ Compensation in the Workplace | October 30, 2018
Virginia Society for Healthcare Human Resources Administration | Legal Updates in the Health Care Industry | October 26, 2018
Virginia Society of CPAs | Harassment and Diversity | October 18, 2018
Virginia Employment Commission | FLSA Issues and Social Media in the Workplace | September 27, 2018
Richmond SHRM | HR on (Mock) Trial: Racial Discrimination | September 20, 2018
Lynchburg SHRM | Internal Workplace Investigations | September 13, 2018
Virginia Employment Commission | Recent Developments in Employment Law | August 23, 2018
Virginia Employment Commission | Employee Handbooks and Social Media in the Workplace | August 23, 2018
Virginia Legal Aid Society Pro Bono Conference | Diversity in the Law | April 20, 2018
Lynchburg Bar Association | Diversity and Implicit Bias in the Law | April 20, 2018
Local Government Attorneys of Virginia | All Aboard the Employment Train: Bringing People on Board — An Overview of the Hiring Process, I-9 Compliance, and Other Immigration Issues of Relevance to Local Governments | April 19, 2018
VT Roanoke Higher Education Center | Workplace Violence | March 3, 2018
SEMINARS + EVENTS
HR LifeLine: 2020 Labor & Employment Webinar Series | Every Thursday in October
2019 Labor and Employment Seminar Series | October 2 - November 5
37th Annual Labor & Employment Seminar Series | September 20, 2018
Recognition
Leah Stiegler Named to 40 Under 40 List | January 5, 2021
31 Woods Rogers Attorneys Listed as “Legal Elite” and “Rising Stars” | November 30, 2020
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