Arbitration

Arbitrator Profile

Diego J. Peña in Manhole

Mr. Peña joined the American Arbitration Association panel of Employment Arbitrators in 2008 and became a full time arbitrator in 2019. Mr. Peña currently serves on several arbitration panels, and has arbitrated labor & employment, consumer, commercial, police/fire and education law disputes in Texas, Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Wisconsin, Washington and Washington, D.C.

Mr. Peña has conducted several arbitrations virtually by Zoom. He is willing to conduct in-person, virtual and hybrid hearings.

He is currently working to join the National Academy of Arbitrators.

Panels

  • American Arbitration Association (AAA) – Labor, Employment, Commercial & Consumer Panels
  • Federal Mediation & Conciliation Services (FMCS) – Labor Panel
  • National Mediation Board (NMB) – Labor Panel
  • Texas Education Agency – Independent Hearing Examiner
  • City of Houston Police Department/Houston Police Officers Union – Independent Hearing Examiner
  • Dallas Area Rapid Transit – Trial Board Panel Hearing Officer
  • Southwest Airlines/Transportation Workers Union Local 555 – Mediation/Arbitration Panel Arbitrator
  • Texas Department of Insurance – Arbitrator
  • Virginia State Corporation Commission – Balanced Billing Arbitration Panel
  • Frito-Lay – Permanent Employment Arbitrator
  • MHMR of Tarrant County – Permanent Employment Arbitrator
  • FINRA – Public Arbitrator

Case Management Philosophy

Mr. Peña’s arbitration philosophy is very straightforward. Having tried cases before some of the best judges and arbitrators in Texas and the United States, Mr. Peña has learned how to manage cases fairly and efficiently.

As a labor and employment arbitrator, Mr. Peña fully understands the positions of the employer and the employee. He is well respected by employer/management attorneys and employee/union attorneys (references available upon request).

Mr. Peña manages his arbitration hearings in the same way his favorite judges and arbitrators conducted their hearings: he treats the parties, the witnesses, counsel and union representatives with dignity. He allows the parties the opportunity to make their cases and present their evidence.

Mr. Peña listens carefully, reviews all the evidence, applies the controlling law and delivers intellectually honest decisions.

Areas of Speciality

  • Labor Arbitrations (see issues and industries below)
  • Police & Firefighter Arbitrations (Fact-Finding and Grievance resolution)
  • Education – Fact-Finding, Arbitrations and Grievances
  • Employment Disputes: Discrimination (Racial, Ethnic, Religious, Gender and Sexual Orientation), Compensation Claims & Wrongful Termination
  • Sexual Harassment & Gender Discrimination in the Workplace
  • Commercial & Business Disputes
  • Consumer Disputes

Labor Arbitration Issues:

Absenteeism, Affirmative action, Age, Arbitrability, Bargaining unit work, Bonus fringe benefits, Conduct (off-duty/ personal), Cost-of-living pay, Demotion, Disability, Discipline (discharge), Discipline (non- discharge), Discrimination, Drug/alcohol offenses, Fact finding, Fringe benefits, Gender, Grievance mediation, Health/hospitalization, Hiring practices, Holiday pay, Holidays, Incentive pay, Insurance, Job classification & rates, Job performance, Job posting/bidding, Jurisdictional dispute, Layoffs/bumping/recall, Leave, Management rights, Merit pay, National origin, Official time, Overtime Pay, Past practices, Pension and welfare plans, Promotion, Race, Religion, Retirement, Safety/health conditions, Seniority, Severance pay, Sexual harassment, Strikes/lockouts/work stoppages/slowdowns, Subcontracting/contracting out, Tenure/reappointment, Unilateral, Union security, Vacation, Vacation pay, Violence or threats, Wages, Work Hours/Schedules/Assignments, Working conditions

Labor Arbitration Industries:

Advertising, Agriculture, Airlines, Automotive, Bakery, Banking, Beverage, Brewery, Broadcasting, Building products, Cement, Chemicals, Clothing, Communications, Construction, Dairy, Distillery, Education, Electrical Equipment/Appliances, Electronics, Entertainment/arts, Feed & fertilizer, Food (manufacturing/processing/service), Foundry, Furniture, Glass/pottery, Grain mill, Health care, Hospital/nursing home, Hotels/motels/casinos/resorts, Iron, Lumber, Machinery, Maritime, Meat packing, Metal fabrication, Mining, Office workers/clerical, Organizations, Packaging, Paint & varnish, Petroleum/petrochemicals, Pharmaceuticals, Plastics, Plumbing, Police & fire, Printing & publishing, Prison guard, Public sector grievances, Public sector interest, Pulp & Paper, Railroads, Real Estate, Refrigeration/HVAC, Restaurants, Retail stores, Rubber/tire, Sports, Steel, Stone/Quarry, Symphony/Orchestra/Music, Textile, Tobacco, Transportation, Trucking & Storage, Utilities, Warehousing

Contact Us

  1. 1 An Arbitrator & Mediator Who Will Listen
  2. 2 An Arbitrator & Mediator Who Will Ask Questions
  3. 3 An Arbitrator & Mediator Who Respects All Parties
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