Findings

Congress finds the following: (1) The proliferation of noncompete agreements throughout sectors, occupational categories, and income brackets is contrary to the commitment of Congress to foster stronger wage growth for workers in the United States. Economists now estimate that 1 in 5 workers is covered by a noncompete agreement. (2) Noncompete agreements are blunt instruments that crudely protect employer interests and place a drag on national productivity by forcing covered workers to either idle for long periods of time or leave the industries in which the workers have honed their skills altogether. (3) Enforceable noncompete agreements also reduce wages, restrict worker mobility, impinge on the freedom of a worker to maximize labor market potential, and slow the pace of innovation in the United States. (4) Employers have access to legal recourses to protect their legitimate interests and property, including trade secret protections, intellectual property protections, and nondisclosure agreements that do not inflict broad collateral harm on the labor market prospects for workers. (5) Employers that rely on a list or lists of vendors, customers, or clients that are not easily obtained by an individual through means other than the work relationship have adequate legal protection through the use of trade secret protections and nondisclosure agreements. (6) Noncompete agreements broadly restrict employment options for workers in the United States when more narrowly targeted remedies are readily available to employers. (7) Fostering an environment where employers can flourish is necessary to promote vitality and prosperity in the economy. (8) Employers may retain critical skilled employees while ensuring that disincentives affecting mobility, including noncompete agreements, do not negatively impact the workforce in the United States.