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from the do-they-want-you-more-than-you-need-them dept.
Sumit Khanna has a blog post with the title, Why I Don't Sign Non-Competes:
[...] Over the course of the next fifteen years, I would be asked to sign non-competes several more times, always prior to employment. I've always refused, and until recently, I've never been denied a position because of that refusal.
A non-compete is a type of contract issued by an employer, typically part of the standard work agreement, job offer or non-disclosure agreement, which states that the employee agrees not to start a business that competes with their current company or to work for their company's competitors, for a set length of time (typically one year) after leaving or being terminated. If that sounds like an illegal contract, in the state of California, it is.
What are soylentils' experience with non-compete clauses?
(Score: 5, Interesting) by isj on Saturday March 24 2018, @03:53PM
In Denmark non-competes are legal. But there are two catches. For the duration of the non-compete the employer must pay 50% of the usual pay to the employee. And the duration is limited to 18 months. The 50% pay is reduced by the pay from any "suitable work" the employee has found. The courts interpret "suitable work" narrowly.
So if you are a software developer and resign or get fired (with or without cause), there is not even a requirement for you to try to find a new job - you still get 50% pay. If you chose to try being, say, a chef then you still get 50% pay because it is not "suitable work" for you (provided you have not been a chef before). So when you are presented with a non-compete you should think "cool - paid vacation/sabbatical"
The end result is that non-competes are rare and only used when they are really needed. I think it is a reasonable balance.