Just trying to prepare for the next round. Is there a way to know if my job // grade level has a non compete clause? Thanks in advance.
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Read the code of ethics that we have to sign yearly. In it, it has a link of situations where you must inform HR of your opportunities. I read it though and interpreted it as only if you want to stay on with the company also. If you cut ties, you don’t have to inform.
Most non-competes won't hold up in court. ask me how i know.
If you had one, you wouldn't be asking.
you don’t. A special non-compete law prohibits companies from imposing anything on you except when you physically steal IP.
How do I know if I have a sports hernia?
@c0 p.s. to my earlier post: if you have unvested equity and are trying to move to another public company, make sure you negotiate a buyout of your awards. It won't be exact, but if you give them proof of the fair market value of your unvested stock awards and options, another public firm will usually buy it out if you ask. The vesting timeline starts over, but I was able to save three years of unvested RSUs at Optum and turn them into three years of new grants that are a combination of NQSOPs, RSUs, and PSUs. Again, I was a director so this wasn't a huge wad of cash but it was better than losing everything.
I no longer work at Optum, but I went through this in the past year. Short answer, if you're not a VP or higher, you probably don't. They come in two flavors - one in your offer of employment and another in a grant award if you receive stock options or RSUs as part of your annual bonus. When you accept those awards, you agree to a bunch of sh-t (restrictive covenants) that are only in force as long as the company maintains your UNVESTED awards. So what will usually happen when you leave is you'll get an accelerated timeline (like 30 days) to act on anything that vests in that time period, and then they expire, as does the grant agreement and any restrictive covenants. I left for a competitor as a Director with equity awards and had no noncompete in them, just a non-solicitation (don't steal Optum employees) that could have been maintained for up to 6 months if and only if my unvested equity was maintained. Standard procedure is that the unvested equity goes away in 30 days, so all those restrictive covenants are gone a month after you leave. But check your docs - I had an attorney review mine because I was going to a competitor that was unlikely to defend me if Optum came after me. I was squeaky clean and never had a noncompete.
Check your state laws. My state essentially nullifies non competes.
If you have one currently, you will have been presented with it, told what it is and been told that you needed to sign it.
Some people have gotten presented with one during their layoff/severance process, but that is pretty rare. It has mostly been people working specialized, technical roles, on patented tech/processes. Another thing I've seen is people getting a non-compete presented to them that prohibits them from going to a specific org for x years. I've seen that one used to discourage people from going to BCBS and other insurers.
Odd question to ask a layoff board