The Federal Trade Commission has proposed an imminent ban on noncompete contracts. Prohibiting these contracts is an important step toward assuring we still have access to the American Dream. It will help businesses innovate in our tight labor market, ensure workers are not stuck in dead-end jobs and make the United States more competitive with regards to our foreign counterparts.
If you’ve been employed, odds are that at some point you have heard of noncompete contracts, and there is a good chance you may have signed one. Historically, businesses used them with high-level executives to prevent them from taking trade secrets to competitors. However, in the last half a century, many businesses have abused noncompete contracts by using them to avoid competition or prevent workers from leaving.
For example, I have defended in court non-English-speaking cleaning people who were sued for having the audacity to switch jobs in violation of their noncompete contracts. The Illinois attorney general once sued Jimmy John’s over its use of noncompete contracts for sandwich-makers. The list of noncompete abuses is long and gut-wrenching and there is no right to a free lawyer when a worker is sued for violating a noncompete contract.
