Noncompetes depress wages and kill innovation. That’s straight from Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair Lina Khan.
Noncompetes restrict 30 million peoples’ right to start their own company or move to a new job. That gives corporations more power over workers, and less freedom for millions of Americans. It would be a clear win for workers if the FTC banned noncompetes, but corporations won’t just let it happen. Corporations will fight to protect these anti-worker noncompetes, so we have to use our collective people power to overcome their corporate power.
The 30 million workers subject to exploitative noncompetes span from tech workers to many in low-wage sectors. President Biden made this point clear, saying “One in five workers without a college education is subject to
non-compete agreements. They're construction workers, hotel workers, disproportionately women and women of color." This is a tool corporations use to pay workers less and restrict their workers’ choices—and increase their corporate profits.
Banning noncompetes could increase worker pay by $300 billion per year and bolster innovation. We must stand up to the massive corporations and their lobbyists who will try to stop this.
