The federal government introduced changes this week to labour rights through Bill C-39 that may make it harder for workers to strike, but it’s perhaps not even the most pertinent matter when it comes to employee rights.
Despite being unenforceable in many jurisdictions and even illegal in others, non-compete clauses that restrict workers from switching jobs or starting their own businesses are rampant – and they’re on the rise. And Canadians have it especially bad.
A study of 15 countries released by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development this summer showed that Canada had the second highest prevalence of non-compete contracts, after only Spain.
And while such restrictions originally applied only to high-ranking executives who might possess trade secrets, these clauses are rapidly expanding down the corporate ladder to even the lowest-ranking employees. Court cases in Canada have involved everyone from seasonal window washers to tattoo artists.
Dan Andrews, head of the growth, competitiveness and regulation division in the OECD’s economics department and author of the report, joins the Do Not Pass Go podcast to discuss how these restrictions are holding back economic growth by depressing wages, innovation and business creation.
Check out the full OECD study here.
