Are You Changing Jobs? Are You Bound By a Non-Compete Agreement? Why Does It Matter?

Changing jobs can be an exciting and busy time. The last thing on your mind during this time is what if any documents you signed when you began working for your soon to be old employer. However, failing to think about that could cause the beginning of your new job to be much more stressful than necessary and could involve your new boss negatively impacting his/her view of you from the start. If your new job is at all related to your old job it is always a good idea to ask the HR department at your old job for copies of any agreements that you signed at the beginning of or during your employment.So what? If you have a non-compete agreement does that mean you can’t change jobs? Absolutely not. Many times, these agreements are not enforceable for a variety of reasons including that they are not reasonably necessary to protect the employer and/or that they are overly broad.The important thing is to make sure you know what you have agreed to. Then if you think your new job could create a conflict with those agreed to obligations, check with an attorney about the enforceability of the agreement. If the agreement is in fact enforceable your attorney may be able to negotiate a release with your old employer.