Pasco Man Sued Over No-Compete Clause, What’s Status with Feds?

A Pasco man finds himself in a sticky situation over a no-compete clause.

  The man's former employer is suing him in Federal court

A no-compete, or non-compete clause is a signed agreement between a worker and their employer, that if they leave the business, they have to sit out a predetermined time period before going to work for a direct competitor.

We in radio have seen a lot of these, especially with morning shows (6-9 or 6-10AM).  The most 'coveted' and usually most listened to time slot is morning drive, stations will often make these jox sign a no-compete so their competition won't hire them away.

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It's estimated by the Federal Trade Commission that 1 in 5 American workers, about 30 million, have some sort of no-compete. However, the FTC's ban on the practice, due to into place in September, was blocked by a  Federal judge. It's being litigated, with no indication if or when it will go into effect.

 A Pasco man who used to work for Permobile is being sued by them in Federal Court after he took a job with Sunrise Medical. They are competing disability mobility companies.

Since 2019, WA State has had a law banning no-competes for workers who make less than $100,000 annually, but Mark Westphal's former employer is suing him in Federal Court, where there is still no ban due to the judge blocking the FTC action.

Supporters of no-compete clauses say it protects companies from having a disgruntled worker take 'trade' secrets or private company data to a competitor. However, supporters of the ban on no-competes say it can trap a worker at a business.

They also say by the time a worker sits out a no-compete, potential job offers can often disappear, or the other company doesn't want to have to wait for the worker to become available.

According to Cascade Public Broadcasting, however, very few companies actually go to court to enforce them if they are violated, at least in WA state.

The WA State AG's office cannot really intervene, because Westphal's case is being tried in Federal Court, and in another state, Tennesee.