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New Maryland Law Prohibits Non-Compete Agreements for Lower Wage Workers

Blank Rome Workplace

If you’re an employer in Maryland, beginning October 1, 2019, you are prohibited from requiring a low wage worker (defined as someone earning less than $15/hour or less than $31,200/year) to sign a non-compete agreement with your company. Maryland’s law follows a national trend in which a number of other states have either passed or are considering similar legislation. Among those states that have already passed legislation preventing employers from enforcing non-compete agreements with lower paid employees are Illinois, Maine, and New Hampshire.

As a cautionary note, Maryland’s new law does not grandfather existing non-compete agreements with employees whose earnings bring them within the purview of the new law, which means that those agreements will become unenforceable after the law takes effect.

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