Using nationally representative survey data on 11,505 labor force participants in 2014, we examine the use, implementation, and labor market outcomes associated with noncompete agreements. Nearly 1 in 5 labor force participants are bound by noncompetes, and nearly 40% have agreed to at least one...

Covenants not to compete (“noncompetes” or “CNCs”) are an increasingly controversial element of the U.S. employer–employee relationship. Numerous state legislatures are reconsidering their noncompete policies, however the empirical research remains fractured and ambiguous on several...

Covenants not to compete are often included in employment agreements between firms and employees, justified by each party's voluntary “freedom to contract.” However, noncompetes may also generate externalities for all individuals in the market, including those who have not signed such...

This paper assesses the content, role, and adaptability of subjective beliefs about contract enforceability in the context of postemployment covenants not to compete (“noncompetes”). We show that employees of all stripes tend to believe that their noncompetes are enforceable, even when they...

We examine how non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) influence firm reputation and the flow of labor market information by analyzing three 'NDA-narrowing' state laws that prohibited firms from using NDAs to silence workers regarding unlawful workplace conduct. We document three main results. First,...

We examine the use of noncompete agreements (NCAs) and their relationship with wage bargaining and wage outcomes using new data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997. NCAs cover 18% of the workers in our sample and adoption patterns are broadly consistent with prior research. The...