Biden FTC Proposes Doing Away With Non-Compete Agreements

What do these companies think they are, the NFL? Seriously, this is the kind of wonderful wonky stuff that a Democratic administration can do for workers. These agreements used to be restricted to high-end jobs, but they're now used even in minimum wage jobs! Via the New York Times:

In a far-reaching move that could raise wages and increase competition among businesses, the Federal Trade Commission on Thursday unveiled a rule that would block companies from limiting their employees’ ability to work for a rival.

The proposed rule would ban provisions of labor contracts known as noncompete agreements, which prevent workers from leaving for a competitor or starting a competing business for months or years after their employment, often within a certain geographic area. The agreements have applied to workers as varied as sandwich makers, hairstylists, doctors and software engineers.

Studies show that noncompetes, which appear to directly affect roughly 20 percent to 45 percent of U.S. workers in the private sector, hold down pay because job switching is one of the more reliable ways of securing a raise. Many economists believe they help explain why pay for middle-income workers has stagnated in recent decades.

And in other Biden administration economic news:

read more