Thread regarding Nike Inc. layoffs

There is at least one more side to the conversation. Are you being compensated in some way for not working at a competitor? The documents I have seen say "in return for not working at a company we consider a competitor, we will pay you this much money." This is enforcable.

That is very different from the historical non-compete where there is no exchange of value, these are very hard to enforce. This is not the same as the kind where you are paid to not work for someone.

I was laid off in the big purge of 2017. I was in innovation and while many of my teammates in other roles in inno did not have theirs enforced, mine was. The agreement I had signed originally stated it would be be for 12 months, But they knocked it down to six when I got laid off. Which meant that I couldn’t work for any company that does anything that could be considered competitive to Nike or its affiliates. I did however get paid my full salary for those six months.

I suspect that there are two sides to the non-compete question that should be acknowledged:

1. If enforced it would potentially cause a candidate from pursuing or accepting positions at other companies in the industry

2. If enforced it would potentially provide some level of certainty regarding severance package offered

Folks in this thread are responding to the two points above interchangeably

Non-competes ARE enforceable. NIKE has fought and won in OR and CA, etc. They won’t want to change that precedent. They will access risk of each position and waive in many cases and enforce in others. Notification comes in USPS mail.

Please look at the actual noncompete agreement you signed. If it says Nike will pay you then it is enforcable. I dont know what the legal threshold is, but if Nike has the option of paying half, then thats enough probably.

You should get an email from Nike Legal saying if Nike is waiving the agreement or not. Most of the time they waive the agreement.

Non-competes are NOT enforceable when you are laid off. They cannot bar you from any kind of employment since they are not offering you any. Oregon is a work-at-will state. Even if they wanted to, the court is not on their side.

‘Anyone’ noticed the questions on this forum are similar and very generic ? Perhaps to drive a few thousand visitors to the mandatory ads?

Good grief people. The question had nothing to do with the broader economy, the availability of comparable jobs in the industry elsewhere or if some positions actually deserved a non-compete from Nike’s perspective.

Everyone understands that Nike could just choose to lay-off everyone with zero severance and not payout any PTO whatsoever. We are in an at will state and they hold all the cards.

The question wasn’t about what Nike could do, but rather what has been happening and/or what they are likely to do or have done.

Everyone is stressed out. Quit being jerks.

Doesn't matter about role or band level — they can choose to in-force it or not at their own will.
Nothing is set in stone 😎

There are jobs that are required to sign the contract when you're promoted that aren't worth being paid to 'not compete' to be honest.

And if Nike wants to save even more money they would just say, go ahead, go find a job during a pandemic and tell them all our secrets 🙃

Why does it matter? Which company exactly in this industry do you think is going to be hiring right now? Everybody is hunkering down and trying to ride this out. No one is in hiring mode. If you have a noncompete or don’t have a noncompete and want to stay in this industry be prepared for a long wait.

Yes, it will be part of the severance package for many employees - depending on the role and band level.