Two days ago, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued its “Final Rule” banning non-compete clauses in employment. Until now, the FTC never officially declared that such clauses constituted an “unfair method of competition.” The Final Rule seeks to upend centuries of state law governing the use of non-compete clauses in…
On December 22, 2023, Governor Kathy Hochul vetoed a bill that would have imposed a ban on non-compete clauses throughout the state of New York for all employees, regardless of earnings level. Read on for more information on this decision in this blog post.
This week, the New York State Assembly passed a bill identical to a bill passed by the Senate earlier this month banning non-compete agreements in employment. The bills now await Governor Hochul’s signature. If she signs them, the law will take effect 30 days later. Read on for more information…
The New York State Senate recently passed a bill barring noncompete agreements in employment. If the Assembly adopts the bill within the next few weeks, it will be sent to Governor Hochul for signature. It’s likely that the bill won’t make it passed the Assembly, but if it does it…
Earlier this year, we blogged about the United States Supreme Court’s decision to consider whether requiring employees to agree to arbitration and a waiver of their rights to assert claims through class actions violated the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). During the Obama administration, the U.S. Department of Justice supported…
Earlier this month, New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman’s office announced that it had secured an agreement from Examination Management Services, Inc. (“EMSI”) to stop using non-compete agreements for most of its New York employees. EMSI is a Texas-based medical information services provider that required all of its New…
In this age of mergers and acquisitions, and increased employee mobility, it is critical that employers and employees understand their respective noncompetition obligations. A Southern District of New York court recently applied the “reasonableness” standards governing enforceability of non-competition agreements, or restrictive covenants, to no-hire agreements. Specifically,in Reed Elsevier Inc.…
FedEx Ground has settled a case with the Attorney General of Massachusetts for misclassifying its delivery drivers. FedEx Ground classifies its drivers as independent contractors, instead of employees, which results in substantial cost-savings to FedEx Ground because under such an arrangement its drivers bear FedEx Ground’s overhead costs, among other…
The United States Supreme Court recently ruled that a union could contract away a union member’s rights to pursue a statutory discrimination claim in court. In 14 Penn Plaza L.L.C. v. Pyett, the Supreme Court considered whether a union member with an age discrimination claim under the Age Discrimination Employment…
New York Governor Paterson recently signed the Broadcast Employees Freedom Work Act which restricts employers in the broadcasting industry from conditioning employment on the signing of noncompete agreements. Noncompete agreements restrict an employee’s ability to work for a competitor for a specified period of time following termination of employment. In…