Michael S. Bernick

Special Counsel

Phone: +1 415 957 3147
Duane Morris LLP
Spear Tower
One Market Plaza, Suite 2200
San Francisco, CA 94105-1127
USA

Michael S. Bernick practices in the area of employment and labor law. He advises employers on issues related to employer taxes, unemployment insurance and disability insurance. In recent years, he has worked with some of the nation’s major employers, staffing companies and industry associations.

Mr. Bernick previously served for nearly five years as director of the California Employment Development Department (EDD), the 10,000-person state department of labor. As EDD director, he oversaw the administration of the state’s employer tax collection system, unemployment insurance system and disability insurance system.

Mr. Bernick is a 1979 graduate of the University of California, Berkeley, Boalt Hall School of Law. He also holds a B.Phil. from Balliol College of the University of Oxford and a B.A. from Harvard College.

Areas of Practice

Employment and Labor Law

Admissions

California

Education

University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, J.D., 1979
University of Oxford, Balliol College, B.Phil., 1976
Harvard College, B.A., 1974

Experience

Duane Morris LLP

- Special Counsel, 2018-present
Sedgwick LLP

- Counsel, 2004-2017
California Employment Development Department (EDD)

- Director, 1999-2004

Professional Activities

Stanford School of Medicine
- Adjunct Professor in the Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences
Milken Institute
- Research Fellow, Employment Programs and Policy
Growth Sector (STEM job training/employment agency)
- Board Chair
Autism Aspergers Spectrum Coalition for Education Networking and Development (AASCEND)
- Board Member and Chair of the Autism Job Club
Positive Resource Center (HIV/AIDS job training center)
- Advisory Board

Civic and Charitable Activities

Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART)
- Board of Directors, 1991-1999, Board President, 1995

Selected Publications

Co-author, "Why Immigration Enforcement is Changing the Way California Works," Daily Journal, April 23, 2025
Author, "Good Jobs, Bad Jobs, No Jobs In 2023," Forbes, December 20, 2022
Author, "A Different Labor Day Story," Forbes, August 30, 2022
Co-author, "ADA Considerations for Neurodiversity Hiring Programs," Law360, August 3, 2022
Author, "Getting Workers Back To Work: Now!" Forbes, May 4, 2022
Author, "The Autistic Savant And The Work World," Forbes, March 9, 2022
Author, "Is Your Company Inclusive of Neurodivergent Employees?" Harvard Business Review, February 16, 2022
Author, "Autism Employment Strategies In 2022: Coffee Is For Closers," Forbes, February 9, 2022
Author, "What California’s Most Celebrated Writer Got Wrong About Capitalism Today And The Middle Classes," Forbes.com, January 19, 2022
Author, "The Craft Of The Homeless Job Counselor," Forbes.com, January 5, 2022
Author, "Professor Sandel, Robert Reich, And The Tyranny Of Hypocrisy," Forbes, November 30, 2021
Author, "The Great Resignation: Ignore The Commentators, Watch This Movie," Forbes, November 2, 2021
Author, "Americans With Autism Have Never Had More Support — Except When It Comes to Employment," Politico, October 4, 2021
Author, "The End Of Federal Unemployment Benefits, And The Return To Work," Forbes, September 8, 2021
Author, "The Future Of Unemployment Insurance," Forbes, February 17, 2021
Author, "The State of Autism Employment In 2021," Forbes, January 12, 2021
Author, "Legal Guidance for the Vaccine, Employers and Workers," Forbes, December 15, 2020
Co-author, "New California Legislation Continues to Redefine Employees vs. Independent Contractors," Duane Morris Alert, September 10, 2020
Author, "Reopening The Economy, Business Resiliency And Change," Forbes, April 13, 2020
Author, "Countering Layoffs, Lessons From The First Week Of The CARES Act," Forbes, April 6, 2020
Author, "The Unprecedented Employer Subsidies This Week To Avoid Layoffs," Forbes, March 30, 2020
Author, "Remote Work and Best Practices: The Coronavirus Workplace Series," Forbes, March 16, 2020
Author, "The Workplace In The Time Of Coronavirus (Part I): Legal Guidelines For Navigating The Upheaval," Forbes, March 9, 2020
Author, "Trucking Was Once A Middle Class Job; Can It Still Be?," Forbes, December 10, 2019
Author, "The Autism City: Disability Services Arrive at the Crossroads," Forbes, October 1, 2019
Co-author, "California Passes Landmark Employment Legislation Redefining Employee Versus Independent Contractor," Duane Morris Alert, September 16, 2019
Author, "Timely Insights on Poverty, Jobs and Race - From Four Decades Ago," Forbes, March 5, 2019
Author, "The Gig Economy Rapidly Evolves," Forbes, February 12, 2019
Author, "Effective Autism (Neurodiversity) Employment: A Legal Perspective," Forbes, January 15, 2019
Author, "The Autism Community Focuses on Jobs, Not Grievances," Wall Street Journal Opinion, January 6, 2019
Author, "After Plant Closings: A Labor Day Story," Forbes, August 28, 2018
Author, "Udacity's Next Strategies For The Upskilling Market," Forbes, August 1, 2018
Author, "America's Playwright', An Institutionalization, and Neurodiversity's Call Today," Forbes, June 12, 2018
Author, "How this Economic Boom May (Finally) Improve Low Wage Care Jobs," Forbes, May 22, 2018
Author, "A Look Inside an Autism-Friendly Workplace and Culture," Forbes, April 18, 2018
Author, "The Power Of The Wikimedia Movement Beyond Wikimedia," Forbes, March 28, 2018
Author, "Coursera's Bet on the Upskilling of American Workers," Forbes, February 21, 2018
Author, "Jerry Brown's Big Idea for Upskilling Workers," Forbes, January 23, 2018

Media Hits

Quoted, "California Unemployment Rate Holds amid Inflation Worries," Associated Press, March 11, 2022
Quoted, "Uncertainty Reigns Over Effect Of Russia-Ukraine War on Bay Area, U.S. Economy," CBS 5 KPIX, February 24, 2022
Quoted, "Two Years On, Employment Still Below Pre-Pandemic Peak," CBS 5 KPIX, January 21, 2022
Quoted, "California Jobless Rate Dips Half-percentage Point to 6.5%," Associated Press International, January 21, 2022
Quoted, "These are the jobs Bay Area employers are having the hardest time filling," San Francisco Chronicle, January 18, 2022
Quoted, "Omicron Threatens to Slow California's Job Recovery," Fox 2 KTVU, December 19, 2021
Quoted, "California Jobless Rate Below 7%; 1st Time Since March 2020," Associated Press Financial Wire, December 17, 2021
Quoted, "California's Unemployment Rate Falls, But Remains Tied With Nevada as Nation's Highest," Newsweek, November 19, 2021
Quoted, "More Than 2,000 Kaiser Pharmacists Plan to Strike This Month," Fox 2 WTVU, November 7, 2021
Quoted, "Hotel Workers March for Return to Work," San Francisco Chronicle, October 31, 2021
Quoted, "California Hiring Slows in September; Jobless Rate at 7.5%," AP, October 22, 2021
Quoted, "Oil Faces Complicated Future in California," Newstext Blogs CalMatters, October 22, 2021
Quoted, "Millions of Capable Workers Are Choosing Not to Participate in the Labor Force," Fox 2 KTVU, October 17, 2021
Quoted, "Job Fair At Valley Fair Mall Sees Few Applicants As Holidays Loom," CBS5 KPIX San Francisco, September 30, 2021
Quoted, "After More than a Year of Hassles, East Bay Roofer Gets EDD Backpay with One Well-placed Phone Call," KTVU Fox 2 TV, September 28, 2021
Quoted, "Start of School Year Fuels California Job Growth in August," AP News, September 17, 2021
Quoted, "More than 2 Million Californians Set to Lose Unemployment Benefits," CalMatters, September 3, 2021
Quoted, "COVID: As Bay Area Workplaces Reopen, Return To Offices Already Posing Legal Questions," CBS SF Bay Area, May 3, 2021
Quoted, "Coronavirus: Extra $600 unemployment payments will be retroactive," The OCR, April 15, 2020
Quoted, "Economist, Health Expert Detail Bay Area’s Return To Normal After Pandemic," CBS SF BayArea, April 13, 2020
Quoted, "School Closures Could Wallop Economy, Disrupt Families," San Francisco Chronicle, March 14, 2020
Interviewed, "California Jobs Report Shows Employment Expanding," CBS San Francisco Bay Area, January 24, 2020
Quoted, "California’s 113-month Job Growth Ties Record Set in 1960s," Associated Press, August 16, 2019
Quoted, "Who Loses In The Case Of Dynamex? We Get An Update On Where The Legislation Stands," KPCC, August 2, 2019
Quoted, "Job Growth Surges By Over 300,000 in December," KVTU, January 4, 2019
Quoted, "California's Job Market Remains Hot, Despite Economic Uncertainty," Los Angeles Times, December 21, 2018
Quoted, "California Gains Just 800 Jobs in June; Unemployment Remains at Record Low," Los Angeles Times, July 20, 2018
Quoted, "California Gains More Than 39,000 Jobs; Unemployment Falls to Record Low," Los Angeles Times, May 18, 2018
Quoted, "California Loses Jobs in March," Los Angeles Times, April 20, 2018
Quoted, "California Gains 35,500 Jobs, and Unemployment Falls to Record-Low 4.4%," Los Angeles Times, March 7, 2018
Quoted, "U.S. Economy Creates 200,000 Jobs in January, Wages Take Off," Los Angeles Times, February 2, 2018
Quoted, "Bay Area Fuels Record State Jobless Rate," Santa Cruz Sentinel Business, January 19, 2018
Quoted, " Minimum Wage Increased In Several Bay Area Cities," CBS SF Bay Area, January 1, 2018

Selected Speaking Engagements

Speaker, "Safety in the Workplace," Duane Morris LLP, September 27, 2023
Speaker, "Pay Practices," Duane Morris LLP, September 27, 2023
Speaker, "Preparing for the Rise of AI at Work," Duane Morris LLP, September 27, 2023
Speaker, "Establishing an Effective Neurodiversity Employment Program: Legal Issues in 2022 and Best Practices," Duane Morris LLP Webinar, June 1, 2022
Presenter, "Reopening in California and the Post-Pandemic Workplace: Recent Developments and Emerging Challenges in Employment and Immigration," Duane Morris LLP, Webinar, April 29, 2021
Speaker, "2020 Vision: Legal Issues to Watch for in the Workplace," Duane Morris Breakfast Briefing, San Francisco, November 8, 2019
Speaker, "Establishing an Effective Neurodiversity Employment Program: Legal Issues," Webinar, August 22, 2018