America’s trustbusters plan to curtail the use of non-compete clauses

Evidence suggests as many as one in five employees signs a non-compete (restraint of trade) agreement. (Image: The Economist)

The Economist

Sat, 14 Jan 2023

Three-quarters of Americans who work, do so for a firm. They have contracts setting out their pay, holiday, benefits and sometimes the appropriate way to dress (although not in journalism). A lot of contracts also say whether employees may work for a competitor if they leave the company. It is hard to know what share of American workers are restricted by these non-compete clauses, but the available evidence suggests it may be as high as one in five. More worrying, these clauses are as likely to apply to workers operating deep-fat...

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