Experts say that contractual agreements such as “non-compete agreements” or “restrictive covenants” are increasingly used by corporate America to address the problem of lost profits due to employee defections. The contractual agreements, often a condition of employment, prevent employees from accepting jobs with competitors located within a certain geographical distance for a reasonable period of time. The non-compete agreements, once limited to high-level senior managers, are now even imposed on line workers in industrial shops.
See "Sign of the times", Kathy Fieweger, Chicago Tribune, June 5, 2001