A non-compete in your offer
A non-compete says that after you leave, there are jobs you agree not to take for a while. It is one of the few clauses in an offer that keeps working after the job ends, which is why it deserves a slower read than the rest.
What it's for
From the employer's side, a non-compete protects what you will learn while working there: customer relationships, pricing, roadmaps, the way things are done. The clause tries to stop that knowledge walking across the street the week after you resign.
From your side, it's a restriction on where you can earn a living after this job, agreed to before the job has started. That's the tension to hold in mind as you read it.
How it shows up in an offer
"For a period of twelve (12) months following the termination of your employment for any reason, you shall not, directly or indirectly, be employed by or provide services to any business that competes with the Company within North America."
For a year after you leave — whether you quit or were let go — you agree not to work for a competitor anywhere in North America. "Directly or indirectly" is meant to cover contracting and consulting too, not just a new job title. What counts as "competes with the Company" is not defined here, which means it's whatever the company later says it is.
What to check in yours
- How long. Six months, a year, two years. The number is usually stated plainly; find it.
- Where. A city, a province or state, a country, a continent, or "anywhere the Company does business." The wider the area, the more of your future the clause reaches.
- What counts as competing. Look for a definition. Some clauses name specific companies or a specific product category; some define it as anything the company does or plans to do. If there's no definition, note that.
- What triggers it. "For any reason" means it applies whether you resign or are dismissed. Some clauses only apply if you resign. Some only apply if the employer chooses to enforce them, sometimes with pay during the restricted period — read for that.
- Where it lives. The non-compete may be in the offer letter, or the offer may point to a separate agreement you haven't seen yet. If the offer says "subject to the Company's standard Confidentiality and Non-Competition Agreement," you are being asked to accept a document that isn't in front of you. Ask for it before you sign, so you're reading the actual words.
- Whether it's paired with a non-solicit. Many offers have both. They restrict different things — see non-solicitation — and it's worth knowing which one you're looking at.
Where a lawyer comes in
The question everyone wants answered is "is this enforceable?" That is a legal question, it depends on where you'll work and on the exact words, and it is one we don't answer. What we can tell you is that it's the right question to bring to an employment lawyer, and that thirty minutes of their time on this one clause is often the best-spent money in an offer.
The second question is whether to raise the clause with the employer before you sign. That's also a judgement a lawyer can help with: depending on how the clause is drafted, asking for changes isn't always in your interest. The report flags this and gives you the question to bring, rather than a script to take to HR.
This page explains what a clause says and what to look for in your own offer. It doesn't tell you what the law is where you work or whether a clause would be enforced — that's a question for an employment lawyer, and the page says so where it applies. Informational, not legal advice.