Idaho has made it easier for companies to enforce noncompete agreements

Re:Idaho has made it easier for companies to enforce noncomp... by ScottBurson on Saturday July 15, 2017 @05:02PM (#14778917)

Compare the economic vibrancy of the Boston metro area (all the way out to Rte. 128) with the San Francisco Bay area (including Silicon Valley). Boston is a major educational hub, with some 250,000 students at a time at many universities and colleges including MIT and Harvard. And yet, the SF Bay area has left Boston in the dust when it comes to startup creation. There's nothing in Boston comparable to Apple, Google, or Facebook. And Boston was once a major hub of the computer industry, with Digital Equipment, Data General, and several smaller manufacturers -- that's all history now.

This is pretty strong empirical evidence that although enforceable noncompetes may be better for existing companies, they are a drag on the regional economy.

(Taking your current employer's clients is not exactly the same thing -- IANAL, but I would think that would be covered by the trade secret protections.)

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Idaho has made it easier for companies to enforce noncomp... by Clubber on Saturday July 15, 2017 @05:08PM (#14778955)

This sort of thing is absolutely, 100% these incumbent companies lobbying their governments to give them a short term economic benefit at the high cost to both employees of that company, employees that work in that local economy, taxpayers in that economy, and the local economy as a whole, and even that company themselves medium term. Who would want to work in Idaho after reading this?

[ Parent | on HN ]