The FTC estimates about 30 million people, or one in five American workers, from minimum wage earners to CEOs, are bound by noncompetes. It says the policy change could lead to increased wages totaling nearly $300 billion per year by encouraging people to swap jobs freely.
I understand there’s a lot of abuse, but for some specialties there just aren’t enough trained workers. This change is going to make employers think hard about things like diesel mechanic certifications and IT certifications. And like my friend, they’ll turn to making workplace loans for the cost.