Do you have to sign a contract with your employer?
For a variety of reasons, many employers do not require their employees to sign them. If you are confident that you have not signed either kind of agreement, you are in a good, enviable position.
Can a contract employee sign a non-compete agreement?
These agreements can also apply to contract workers as well as regular employees. The non-compete agreement says you can’t work for a competitor or start a competing business for a certain amount of time. The non-disclosure agreement says you can’t talk about anything confidential you come across during your job.
What happens if an employee refuses to sign a confidentiality agreement?
Employers must be prepared to terminate any employee who refuses to sign the agreement. If an employer allows even one employee to refuse and remain employed, the agreements signed by the other employees will not be legally binding.
Can a new employee sign a non-disclosure agreement?
From a legal perspective, the promise of the job itself is sufficient consideration to support a confidentiality agreement or the non-disclosure agreement. Getting a new employee to sign either a confidentiality agreement, non-disclosure agreement, or both isn’t much trouble for the HR professional.
Can a company require an employee to sign a nonsolicitation agreement?
First of all, state law may not allow an employer to require employees to sign a nonsolicitation agreement. For example, the California Supreme Court has held that nonsolicitation agreements that prohibit employees from soliciting their former employer’s customers are void – unenforceable – as a matter of the state’s public policy.
These agreements can also apply to contract workers as well as regular employees. The non-compete agreement says you can’t work for a competitor or start a competing business for a certain amount of time. The non-disclosure agreement says you can’t talk about anything confidential you come across during your job.
For a variety of reasons, many employers do not require their employees to sign them. If you are confident that you have not signed either kind of agreement, you are in a good, enviable position.
Can a unsigned contract be relied on by an employer?
The term of the contract in question will also need to be both reasonable and fair, and it’s best if the employee has never objected to it. In these circumstances, arguing that an unsigned contract is entirely unenforceable is probably a very weak one. The employer should be able to rely on the contract, even if it remained unsigned.