FTC Announces Agenda for Jan. 9 Workshop, Non-Competes in the Workplace: Examining Antitrust and Consumer Protection Issues

The Federal Trade Commission has announced an agenda for its upcoming workshop in Washington, DC regarding non-compete agreements in the workplace.

First announced on Dec. 5, 2019, the workshop will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Jan. 9, 2020 in the FTC’s Headquarters Building, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC, and will be webcast live.

Non-compete clauses are covenants in employment contracts that limit the ability of an employee to join or start a competing firm after a job separation. Panelists at the workshop include legal scholars, economists, and policy experts, who will evaluate the effects of non-compete clauses on labor market participants and any efficiency rationales they may have. The panels also will consider the potential harms to workers that can and should be addressed through the FTC’s rulemaking, law enforcement, or advocacy authority.

Interested parties may submit public comments electronically or in paper form on these topics or other related topics through February 10, 2020. For further information on the workshop and the public comment process, including instructions for filing comments in paper form and a list of additional suggested questions for comment, please visit the workshop website.

The workshop is free and open to the public. Seating will be on a first come, first served basis. Directions to the event and information about reasonable accommodations are available on the workshop website. For general questions about the workshop, please contact us at NonCompetes@ftcgov.

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