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Employers Beware: Justice Department Obtains First Criminal Indictment Related to “No Poach” Agreements

 

Recently, the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division obtained its first criminal indictment based upon an alleged “no poach” agreement between two employers in which the employers apparently agreed not to solicit each other’s employees.

This development is notable for a few reasons.  For starters, although the Justice Department has long indicated they would seek a criminal indictment against employers for this behavior, this is the first criminal indictment obtained.  (To be fair, the Justice Department has pursued civil claims previously.)  In addition, depending upon how the Justice Department prosecutes this claim (and whether it obtains a verdict) this case could provide a blue print for subsequent criminal indictments for “no poach” agreement disputes.

Regardless of the outcome of this case, now is as good of a time as any for employers to look at their own policies and procedures to determine whether they are engaging in similar “no poach” agreements or related wage suppression measures.  Taking steps to ensure HR is not engaging in “no poach” agreements or wage suppression measures is a wise idea.  The importance of preventing (or stopping) this conduct could mean the difference between fixing an error immediately or becoming the next target of a Justice Department criminal indictment.


For additional information:  https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/former-owner-health-care-staffing-company-indicted-wage-fixing

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