We Have A Legal Solution To Employee Retention
One of the themes that I consistently hear from clients of FairLaw Firm who own or run businesses is that they are now having a hard time both attracting new employees and keeping their existing employees. While not a solution for every client, I have a solution that just may work which, when implemented once, becomes well worth the investment.
Concerned About Employees Working For Competitors?
In a conversation with one of our clients, we discussed these problems in some detail. Unfortunately, after finding great candidates for employment, after putting them through a training program, and after the employees finally get up to speed and become profitable for the company, the employees end up leaving to work for a competitor. Losing employees is bad, but losing them to competitors is worse.
I asked my client about the wage paid to new employees, but the wage was competitive. My client told me that the company has a great culture, and that before the pandemic the company did not have problems with employees leaving.
Have Employees Sign Noncompete and Non-Solicitation Agreements
I then proposed a legal solution – that the company start using agreements with restrictive covenants. My suggestion was that my client’s company require that both existing employees and new hires sign agreements that (a) prevent employees from leaving to work for competitors for a specific period of time and (b) prevent employees who leave to solicit my client’s current employees.
These Agreements Are Both Legal And Legally Enforceable in Florida
These types of noncompete and non-solicitation agreements (known as “restrictive covenants”) are both legal and enforceable in Florida. Fla. Stat. §542.335. A valid restrictive covenant must be reasonable in time and scope, and it must relate to a protectable and legitimate business interest. Employers must also be conscious of the defenses to restrictive covenants, which include failing to enforce a noncompete agreement against another former employee, not timely paying all the wages to the employee, not giving the employee any new training, or not having a protectable business interest, along with other defenses.
FairLaw Firm Can Help You Implement This Solution
At FairLaw Firm, we are familiar with the laws in Florida dealing with noncompete and non-solicitation agreements. We counsel clients about implementing these policies, assist with drafting and rolling out the agreements, and then assist clients with enforcement of their existing “restrictive covenants”. Our experience is that once an employer successfully enforces its “restrictive covenants” in a court proceeding against a former employee, people are less likely to try and violate the “restrictive covenants” in the future. Using “restrictive covenants” becomes another investment in the future of your business, and that investment in the future will normally pay great dividends in employee retention – reducing the turnover costs of finding, replacing, and training new employees.
To find out more about FairLaw Firm and how we can help your business, reach out to us by phone or email. You will find us to be both responsive and responsible.
