How would you navigate No-Hire Agreements in your industry?
July 12, 2011 5:43 PM Subscribe
How would you navigate No-Hire Agreements in your industry?
I have been looking around for a job recently. The industry I work in is not very big - there are maybe twenty to thirty companies I could work for - globally.
I just discovered from one of our senior managers that our company has been entering into 'no-hire' agreements with some of the other companies in the industry, including those who don't directly compete with us. I have not been able to verify this, but I have good reason to suppose it to be true. So the question is not whether they have done so, or not. I am taking that as a given for now.
To be clear, I (like all the other employees of my company) have signed non-compete agreements. This prevents us from going directly after the same customers, or even going to work for one of our customers as an employee, but not from working for competitors in non-customer-facing roles. I accept this.
But this direct agreement between two companies is not one to which I am a party, and yet it seriously limits my job mobility wherever I work in the world, limits my earning potential, and raises the possibility that the companies concerned will discuss with my current employer if I even approach them, even if it's for a non-customer facing role.
How would you proceed?
I have been looking around for a job recently. The industry I work in is not very big - there are maybe twenty to thirty companies I could work for - globally.
I just discovered from one of our senior managers that our company has been entering into 'no-hire' agreements with some of the other companies in the industry, including those who don't directly compete with us. I have not been able to verify this, but I have good reason to suppose it to be true. So the question is not whether they have done so, or not. I am taking that as a given for now.
To be clear, I (like all the other employees of my company) have signed non-compete agreements. This prevents us from going directly after the same customers, or even going to work for one of our customers as an employee, but not from working for competitors in non-customer-facing roles. I accept this.
But this direct agreement between two companies is not one to which I am a party, and yet it seriously limits my job mobility wherever I work in the world, limits my earning potential, and raises the possibility that the companies concerned will discuss with my current employer if I even approach them, even if it's for a non-customer facing role.
How would you proceed?
You may find this US Department of Justice settlement interesting.
The DOJ had been investigating a variety of interlocking broad agreements between six companies--Adobe, Apple, Google, Intel, Intuit, and Pixar--that prohibited them from soliciting one another's employees, which the DOJ said today "eliminated a significant form of competition to attract highly skilled employees." The settlement, if approved, would end the investigation and likely discourage such agreements between other high-tech companies in Silicon Valley.posted by Nelson at 5:57 PM on July 12, 2011 [2 favorites]
You should contact an attorney, especially one familiar with the global environment and the impact of the law of various jurisdictions. In the United States, the federal government and some states have statutes or precedent against limiting the ability of workers to be gainfully employed. Those agreements are certainly contrary to public policy, which clearly favors having people work and also clearly favors maximizing tax revenue from employees who can earn more in a competitive labor market.
A good attorney may be able to help you determine whether you have some remedy that will free you from these restraints.
posted by Hylas at 6:09 PM on July 12, 2011
A good attorney may be able to help you determine whether you have some remedy that will free you from these restraints.
posted by Hylas at 6:09 PM on July 12, 2011
It definitely wouldn't hurt to talk to an attorney to find out what your options are. But this may be a situation in which a legal remedy may be open to you, yet pursuing it would be a high-risk strategy which will likely practically backfire.
Or in other words, such collusion may well be illegal, but being the guy who calls in the Feds and reveals his employers' illegal hiring practices is not going to do your career any favors.
posted by Diablevert at 6:38 PM on July 12, 2011
Or in other words, such collusion may well be illegal, but being the guy who calls in the Feds and reveals his employers' illegal hiring practices is not going to do your career any favors.
posted by Diablevert at 6:38 PM on July 12, 2011
1. Talk to the DoJ.
2. Realize that, in many states, the non-compete contracts you signed are garbage and you can safely ignore them. (For example, in California such agreements are automatically void except in some very, very narrow circumstances.) When in doubt, hire a good lawyer.
posted by introp at 6:50 AM on July 13, 2011
2. Realize that, in many states, the non-compete contracts you signed are garbage and you can safely ignore them. (For example, in California such agreements are automatically void except in some very, very narrow circumstances.) When in doubt, hire a good lawyer.
posted by introp at 6:50 AM on July 13, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by dfriedman at 5:49 PM on July 12, 2011