Best Ohio Non-Compete Employment Law Attorney Answer: Do I have to sign an employer’s no competition agreement in order to get hired? Can I be forced to sign my employer’s no compete contract to keep my job? Can my employer require me to sign the noncompete provision even though I’m getting nothing except continued employment in return?
Potential clients call our employment law lawyers regarding non-compete agreements with increasing frequency. That’s probably because non-competes are becoming more and more common. Hair dressers, massage therapists, sandwich makers, dog groomers – it seems like everyone has to sign a noncompete to get their job, and to keep it. Since walking away from a job is not a viable option for most of us, we really have no option but to sign these agreements.
The back-lash against non-competes agreements gained some real traction after widely-publicized Jimmy John’s case. And in three states – Massachusetts, Hawaii, New Mexico – legislation that would protect workers from noncompete agreement has been introduced.
Massachusetts first sought to ban covenants not to compete last year. Why? No competition contracts are good for employers, but they are bad for economic development. That’s especially true in the tech sector. The Legislature’s first attempt to pass a bill banning non-compete employment provisions failed, but efforts have redoubled and another bill is pending this year.
Hawaii is making a similar move, and its Legislature has proposed a bill that prohibits no competition clauses in the tech sector. That bill is gaining widespread support not only from employees who want to be free to move from job to job, but also from tech companies that hire them. “For employees of large consumer-oriented companies which do business with nearly everyone, a noncompete agreement tends to effectively eliminate nearly all viable options for employment within the state … This encourages technology workers to move out of state to secure employment within their chosen field, thus reducing the available candidate pool.”
Similarly, a physician-shortage in New Mexico was the impetus for bill in the New Mexico Legislature that would limit noncompete agreements with physicians.
However, other states are doubling-down on pro-employer noncompete legislation. In Wisconsin, a bill to radically expand enforcement and penalties for breach of non compete agreements has been proposed. It would allow employers to include “sign or be fired” clauses in their non-competes even when employers are offering no consideration other than continued employment. The bill would also bar courts from considering economic hardship on the employee and from requiring employers to post a bond to protect employees from wrongfully issued injunctions.
If you have found yourself asking, “is my non-compete agreement enforceable?” — or even think that you might need an employment lawyer, then it would be best to call the right attorney to schedule a free and confidential consultation at 866-797-6040 to discuss your non-competition agreement. Spitz, The Employee’s Law Firm and its attorneys are experienced and dedicated to protecting employees’ rights and solving employment disputes over these types of contractual no-compete agreement.
Disclaimer:
The materials available at the top of this page and at this employment law website are for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. If you are trying to figure out “is my non-competition agreement enforceable,” or “how do I get out of a non-compete agreement,” it would be best for to contact an Ohio attorney to obtain advice with respect to your particular employment law issue or problem. Use and access to this employment law website or any of the links contained within the site do not create an attorney-client relationship. The legal opinions expressed at or through this site are the opinions of the individual lawyer and may not reflect the opinions of Spitz, The Employee’s Law Firm, Brian Spitz, or any individual attorney.