How long do you have to be employed before a Non-Compete Agreement goes into effect?

I signed a 6 mo non-compete agreement. I was in training for 2 weeks, I resigned 3 days after. The contract states I can not work for any company competitor. My insurance benefits hadn't even took effect, I was barely there.. ??

An agreement goes into effect as soon as it is signed, or on the date that the agreement itself 'says' that it goes into effect.

Public policy, however, imposes VERY strict limits on what non-compete agreements can be enforced. In many States they're almost totally banned, and even in those States that allow them there are strict 'reasonableness' tests.

You might want to run your agreement past a lawyer familiar with your States non-compete laws. It may well be that it's not enforceable.

From your screenname I assume you're in Florida? Florida allows non-compete's, but there must be a demonstrable "real business interest" for them to protect.

If, for example, the two weeks training gave you a lot of info about their pricing structure, customer discounts, suppliers, and other stuff that would be useful to a competitor, then they can legally restrict you from going to work for such a competitor. If, on the other hand, your job was to be a clerical one and they were just teaching you how to use their filing and computer systems, they have no legitimate interest in stopping you being a clerk for a competitor, and the agreement is unenforceable.

Richard

Even ACCEPTING a position that you have signed a non-compete agreement for is enough to disqualify you for the terms agreed to in the non-compete agreement.

As you actually started the 2 weeks of training, the 6 months would start clocking from the time you quit or were fired.

It is up to any potential employer and your skills if they would want to risk or invest in trying to hire you; unless you are phenomenal at what you do, most places are not going to take the financial risk of having to defend hiring you against a non-compete clause under any circumstances regarless of what the state laws are or whether they will actually hold up.

For most jobs these days, are there are 200 applicants for every position and one of them that does not have non-compete possible baggage can fit the bill as easily if not better than you could.

Best course of action would be to try filing for unemployment, which you may or may not qualify for depending on a number of factors, and look for a new job in an unrelated field that could utilize your core skill set as soon as possible.

The agreement goes into effect as soon as you sign it. You were barely there but you were there long enough to sign a contract saying you would not work for another similar company for 6 months. You have to follow that or you could be sued.

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