Robert A. Sar

Bob is a strategic advocate and advisor for employers. Bob has defended many employers and executives in successful jury verdicts and in arbitration. He regularly helps in-house counsel, owners and HR leaders creatively solve difficult problems, leveraging his 25+ years’ experience resolving difficult labor and employment law situations.

Bob focuses on solving problems involving all areas of labor and employment law, including discrimination, harassment, retaliation, whistle-blowers, wage and hour, class and collective actions, non-competition disputes, leaves of absence, employment agreements, policies, union labor matters and workplace safety.

Bob has a long record of civic service, including assisting the founding of the North Carolina Economic Development Partnership and leadership of the North Carolina Ports Authority. He is the managing shareholder of Ogletree Deakins’ Raleigh office, a member of the firm’s management committee, and former chair of the Whistleblower practice group.

Bob represents diverse industries including higher education, retail, financial, healthcare, pharmaceutical, professional services, hospitality, manufacturing, sales, software and technology. He serves as the firm’s relationship shareholder for numerous firm clients.

Bob is named to The Best Lawyers in America, 2012 – 2022 eds. North Carolina Business Magazine has named Bob to its Legal Elite Labor & Employment lawyer list for many years. Bob is recognized in Chambers USA., and by Super Lawyers as one of a handful of NC attorneys for corporate employment defense litigation. He is rated AV by Martindale-Hubbell, the highest rating available.

Bob’s recent experiences include:

defending a large healthcare system sued for breach of employment contract and disability discrimination;
defending a higher education client whose faculty governance system was challenged by disgruntled former faculty members;
defending a media company sued for race discrimination and sex harassment;
nationwide defense of pandemic-motivated wrongful termination claims;
developing complex C-Suite contracts and restrictive covenants;
providing employment-related advice on behalf of buyers and sellers in due diligence phases;
workplace investigations of possible harassment, discrimination, bullying and other allegations; and
coordinating pay equity audits in numerous industries.

The NLRB Throws a Flag on NCAA Division I Football and Explains Some Rules to Colleges and Universities

In an official memorandum entitled “General Counsel’s Report on the Statutory Rights of University Faculty and Students in the Unfair Labor Practice Context,” the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) General Counsel Richard F. Griffin, Jr., explains several NLRB enforcement positions on National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) employee status in the university setting. Most dramatically, the memorandum, which was issued on January 31, 2017 to all Regional Directors, Officers-in-Charge, and Resident Officers, declares National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) football players are actually employees.

Fourth Circuit Approves “Exempt” Classification of CEO’s Secretary

The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals recently held that the Fair Labor Standards Act’s administrative employee exemption properly applied to a Chief Executive Officer’s (CEO) secretary. Altemus v. Fed. Realty Inv. Trust, 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 15917 (4th Cir. July 31, 2012). This case is noteworthy inasmuch as it illustrates that…..