Meet Attorney & Founder Halima Woodhead:
Halima Woodhead is an international employment lawyer with 14+ years of cross-border experience. Through Woodhead's Law Practice, she helps US companies build their employer footprint across borders the right way from the start — so they don't have to unbuild it later.
Her clients are typically scaling companies hiring internationally for the first time, or already operating across borders and wanting independent counsel on whether their current setup — an EOR, a contractor structure, a supply chain compliance program — would actually survive scrutiny. The path to B Corp certification, a clean acquisition, or entry into regulated markets is dramatically shorter for companies that built their employment structures right the first time. That's the work. She practices exclusively on the employer side.
Halima brings an unusually wide lens to cross-border employment. She spent over a decade at the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of International Labor Affairs, where she advised senior White House-equivalent officials, cabinet ministers, and labor authorities in foreign governments on labor law and enforcement; worked across the project lifecycle on U.S. capacity-building engagements with foreign labor ministries — from project design through on-the-ground troubleshooting; and was a runner-up for the joint Secretary of State and Secretary of Labor Award for Excellence in Labor Diplomacy.
She has personally conducted over 1,000 worker interviews across countries and sectors, and has deep regional knowledge of Latin America. She holds bar admissions in New York and North Carolina.
Halima holds a J.D. and M.A. (International Affairs) from American University and a B.A. from the University of Arizona (Comparative Politics). She speaks fluent English and Spanish, and works directly in both. She lives in Hendersonville, NC with her husband, son, and dog, and can usually be found volunteering in her community or running local trails.
Experience:
Global Employment Counsel | Woodhead’s Law Practice | April 2026 - Present
Helps companies navigate the legal complexities of employing workers across borders, from compliance and risk audits to crisis management and workforce structuring.
Maternity Leave | September 2025 - March 2026
Founder & Principal | Enterprise for Humankind | August 2024 - September 2025
Founded consulting practice advising companies on cross-border labor compliance and human rights due diligence — the direct precursor to Woodhead's Law Practice.
Senior International Labor Advisor for Central America Initiatives | Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB), United States Department of Labor (USDOL) |January 2021 - June 2024
Served as the U.S. Department of Labor's primary representative to the White House on Central America labor policy.
Led USDOL’s cross-functional Central America team.
Advised private sector actors on improving human rights conditions across supply chains.
Served as the Department of Labor's technical lead for the labor pillar of the Biden-Harris Administration Strategy to Address the Root Causes of Migration in Central America. Conceived and drove adoption of the Good Governance Good Jobs Declaration.
Senior International Labor Advisor for Trade Policy | Office of Trade and Labor Affairs (OTLA), ILAB/USDOL |November 2017 – January 2021
Led several multi-disciplinary teams to design and implement creative solutions to business and human rights problems.
Award-winning leader for multiple successful high-priority initiatives that advanced global labor and employment standards concretely for workers and companies.
Regularly advised high-level actors (private, public, and NGO sectors) on business and human rights issues.
Represented ILAB to domestic stakeholders including unions, businesses, academics, advocacy groups, Congress, the media, and the general public.
Represented USDOL to other U.S. government agencies to promote inclusion of global labor and employment standards in government-wide initiatives.
Interim Chief | Monitoring and Enforcement of Trade Agreements (META) Division, OTLA/ ILAB/USDOL | February 2018 – June 2018; November 2021 – April 2022; September 2023 - April 2024
Led the division responsible for monitoring whether countries honor their labor commitments under U.S. free trade agreements including developing enforcement strategies, advising senior leadership and partner agencies on country context, and engaging governments, employers, and civil society on compliance.
Managed a globally dispersed team and led strategic planning, budgeting, and performance measurement.
International Labor Advisor for Trade Policy | META/OTLA/ILAB/USDOL | October 2014 – November 2017
Imagined, pitched, and led negotiation and oversight of the historic U.S.-Honduras Labor Rights Monitoring and Action Plan, the only labor enforcement initiative under the labor chapter of a free trade agreement with the public backing of all stakeholders, sustainable and measurable outcomes, and built-in tripartite dialogue.
Developed deep expertise and trusted networks on public policies related to labor rights in Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, and Peru.
Political Officer for Labor and Human Rights| United States Department of State, Embassy Tegucigalpa, Honduras | March 2014 – October 2014
Invited by the Ambassador to perform a special assignment at the U.S. Embassy in Tegucigalpa.
Represented the U.S. government in local labor, employment, and human rights engagements.
Served as the Mission’s labor and employment expert to integrate labor equities into existing workstreams.
Presidential Management Fellow | META/OTLA/ILAB/USDOL |April 2012 – March 2014
Led investigation of a comprehensive complaint against the Government of Honduras under the Labor Chapter of the Dominican Republic-Central America-United States Free Trade Agreement alleging that the government failed to enforce labor laws regarding freedom of association, the right to organize and bargain collectively, the minimum age for the employment of children and the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labor, and acceptable conditions of work with respect to minimum wages, hours of work, and occupational safety and health in the apparel, textile, and auto parts manufacturing, agriculture, and transportation and shipping sectors.
Interviewed over 1,000 workers in Spanish, reviewed official documents, conducted legal analysis, and wrote the most authoritative and comprehensive report in decades documenting labor conditions in Honduras and making recommendations to the government for enforcement improvements.
Education:
Juris Doctor
Washington College of Law, American University, 2011.
Master of Arts in International Affairs, concentration in International Development Policy
School of International Service, American University, 2011.
Bachelor of Arts in Comparative Political Science, minor in Regional Development
University of Arizona, 2007.
Awards:
Secretary of Labor’s Award for Professional Excellence (2016, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023);
Secretary of Labor’s Award for Leadership (2019);
Runner-up for the Joint Secretary of State and Secretary of Labor Award for Excellence in Labor Diplomacy and the first nominee ever from outside of the Department of State (2017);
Ambassador’s Distinguished Appreciation Award (2014);
Additional Notes:
Native English, Fluent Spanish.
New York and North Carolina Law Licenses.