Georgia is the other state that I am aware of that holds noncompete agreements to be unenforceable. It’s rather shameful that companies still attempt to get employees to sign on to employment agreement terms that are illegal and they do so because they believe that people simply won’t figure it out on their own. The bottom line is that in California an employer cannot prevent you from earning a living in a future job as a precondition for a current job, even if in the same field.
Californians have the right to move from one company to another or start their own business and can’t be prohibited by their employer from working for a competitor in their next job, the state Supreme Court ruled Thursday.