Gabriel Maldonado-González

Gabriel Maldonado-González concentrates his practice on labor and employment law counseling and litigation. He also leverages his robust public sector background to advise on government affairs and public policy matters.

He regularly advises clients across multiple industries on all matters related to compliance with labor and employment law and regulations, while also engaging in preventive counseling and representing employers before federal and state courts and administrative forums. Gabriel is also a frequent speaker and collaborator for several private sector employer organizations on labor and employment law, human resources, and labor market topics. 

Prior to joining McV, Gabriel served as Secretary of the Puerto Rico Department of Labor and Human Resources. During his tenure, he promoted public policy that allowed our jurisdiction to reach its lowest unemployment rate in history while significantly increasing other key indicators. In recognition of his work as Secretary of Labor, he was awarded the Mercury Award for Entrepreneurial Innovation and Transformation by the United Retailers Association. He was also recognized as a Man Who Leads 2024 by the organization Women Who Lead, for his support towards equal pay and leadership opportunities for women.

In this role, he published several opinions and guidance documents, including the Guidelines for Interpreting Laws Prohibiting Discrimination in the Workplace; a model protocol for investigating sexual harassment claims; and the first gender wage gap report under Act No. 16-2017 (Puerto Rico Equal Pay Act). Furthermore, he was instrumental in the enactment of Act No. 27-2024, which created local employment law exemptions for certain remote workers and airline employees.

Gabriel was also the first president of the Minimum Wage Review Commission created under Act No. 47-2021. As liaison with the federal government, he successfully lobbied for the exclusion of Puerto Rico from proposed regulations by the U.S. Department of Labor to increase the minimum salary level threshold for exempt employees. He also negotiated a collective bargaining agreement with several unions in the construction industry on behalf of the government and successfully intervened to resolve several high-profile labor conflicts.

His career in public service includes serving as Chief of Staff at the Central Office for Recovery, Reconstruction and Resiliency (COR3), and as General Counsel, Corporate Secretary and Advisor for Legislative Affairs at the Department of Economic Development and Commerce (DDEC), the Puerto Rico Industrial Development Company (PRIDCO), and the Puerto Rico Trade and Export Company. During this time, he played an important role in federally funded reconstruction efforts, as well as various real estate, tax and economic incentives transactions. He also led the development of major policy initiatives, including Act No. 60-2019 (Puerto Rico Incentives Code), the reorganization and merger of several economic development entities within the DDEC, and the creation and initial startup processes of Invest Puerto Rico and Discover Puerto Rico.

Prior to these experiences in the Government of Puerto Rico, he worked at another law firm specializing in labor and employment law counseling and litigation. Earlier in his career, he served as judicial law clerk to the honorable Mildred G. Pabón Charneco, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico, and to the honorable Grace M. Grana Martínez, Appellate Judge of the Puerto Rico Court of Appeals. He also worked as legal advisor for programmatic affairs and special projects at the Office of the Governor of Puerto Rico.