{"id":734,"date":"2015-07-29T15:33:08","date_gmt":"2015-07-29T15:33:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bfvlaw.com\/hawaii-bans-non-compete-and-non-solicit-of-employee-covenants-in-the-high-tech-industry\/"},"modified":"2015-07-29T15:33:08","modified_gmt":"2015-07-29T15:33:08","slug":"hawaii-bans-non-compete-and-non-solicit-of-employee-covenants-in-the-high-tech-industry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bfvlaw.com\/hawaii-bans-non-compete-and-non-solicit-of-employee-covenants-in-the-high-tech-industry\/","title":{"rendered":"Hawaii Bans Non-Compete and Non-Solicit of Employee Covenants in the High Tech Industry"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hawaii recently\u00a0enacted legislation that voids non-compete and non-solicitation of employee covenants for employees in the high tech sector.\u00a0\u00a0 The new law applies to Hawaii employers engaged in \u201ca trade or business that derives the majority of its gross income from the sale or license of products or services resulting from its software development or information technology development, or both.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Act\u2019s stated purpose is to \u201cstimulate Hawaii’s economy by prohibiting non-compete agreements and restrictive covenants that forbid post-employment competition for employees of technology businesses.\u201d\u00a0 More specifically, the legislation found that:<\/p>\n

\u201c[R]estrictive employment covenants impede the development of technology businesses within the State by driving skilled workers to other jurisdictions and by requiring local technology businesses to solicit skilled workers from out of the State.\u00a0 Eliminating restrictive covenants for employees of technology businesses will stimulate Hawaii\u2019s economy by preserving and providing jobs for employees in this sector and by providing opportunities for those technology employees to establish new technology companies and new job opportunities in the State.<\/p>\n

In passing the Act the legislature also found that:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. restrictive covenants impose special hardships on employees in technology businesses because they are highly specialized professionals trained to perform specific industry jobs;<\/li>\n
  2. because Hawaii\u2019s geography \u00a0creates unique challenges for the state\u2019s economy, non-compete agreements for employees working in Hawaii unduly restrict future employment opportunities for technology workers and have also a chilling effect on the creation of new technology businesses within Hawaii; and<\/li>\n
  3. \u201cHawaii has a strong public policy to promote the growth of new businesses in the economy, and a \u2018noncompete atmosphere\u2019 hinders innovation, creates a restrictive work environment for technology employees in the State, and forces spin-offs of existing technology companies to choose places other than Hawaii to establish their businesses.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The law went into effect on July 1, 2015, but does not apply to covenants entered into before that date.<\/p>\n

    Hawaii\u2019s new Act should be of interest to all employers in the High Tech industry, even those who do not operate within Hawaii, as the issue of whether non-competes stifle innovation in the high tech industry is becoming a national debate. Georgia\u2019s legislature has concluded the opposite, that greater ability to enforce non-compete covenants fosters an environment that is favorable to attracting new business to the state and keeping existing business within the state. This premise is debatable, as evidenced by the number of states that have laws that favor employees.\u00a0 Other jurisdictions may pass legislation in the future that also curtails the viability of restrictive covenants in the high tech industry based on the belief that non-competes stifle the mobility of workers and innovation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Hawaii recently\u00a0enacted legislation that voids non-compete and non-solicitation of employee covenants for employees in the high tech sector.\u00a0\u00a0 The new law applies to Hawaii employers engaged in \u201ca trade or business that derives the majority of its gross income from the sale or license of products or services resulting from its software development or information […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_mo_disable_npp":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[25],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nHawaii Bans Non-Solicitation of Employee Covenants<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Hawaii recently enacted legislation that voids non-compete and non-solicitation of 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