04.20.07
The Proposed Demise of the Non-Compete Agreement in Connecticut
Corey J. Brinson
The Connecticut Labor and Judiciary committee recently voted out of committee House Bill #6989 that would ban noncompete agreements in all employment contracts, except if the employee obtained trade secrets.
Connecticut currently permits noncompete agreements; however, courts scrutinize those agreements ensuring that they are not unduly restrictive in scope, time, or location.
The impetus behind this bill arises from an incident at ESPN. ESPN chose to switch security guard companies, but it wanted to keep the existing guards. The security guard company that was losing the contract, enforced the guards' noncompete agreements. Consequently, some of the guards, who would have had jobs with the new security company at ESPN, were terminated.
Opponents of the bill argue that employers invest substantial resources into employees and should be able to protect that investment from competitors. The bill is set for a debate and vote on the House floor and if passed it would dramatically change many industries such as broadcasting, which regularly requires noncompete agreements in television personalities’ contracts.
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