A Recent Lay Off At Our Office. Is this the corporate norm?

Question

Hard to describe what happened recently, but I will try. One employee who has been with our company 11+ years was laid off last week.

Her position was ancillary in the way it was made for her, it was a non titled position and that in itself is sketchy in corporate america. The lady was offered several positions that she turned down, but rathered continued with the ancillary position. ( fill in when managers are out or sick, audit records ect)

Well, the lay off happened and this extra position was removed. The gal in question was offered a job she declined and opted to leave.. as a lay off.

I spoke with her today. She stated the exit interview she had left her with a stack of documents to sign and got back in a folder. One of the documents she signed and didn't read clearly was .. an agreement that SHE WOULD NOT TALK ABOUT HER EXPERIENCE WITH OUR COMPANY OUTSIDE THE OFFICE ONCE SHE LEFT !! How can a company enforce that? How legal is this? Has anyone heard of this ?

Answer 1

it is not unheard of - companies use many methods to protect their interests.  And it is legal if she signed it.  It can be enforced in various ways depending on how she violates the contract  but most likely they would sue her for breach of contract and seek monetary damages.

Answer 2

Perfectly legal.  I have been requested to sign a similiar agreement as part of a severance package.

  Commonly, an employer will not want you to leave with a list of their customers. They may ask you to sign a similar agreement, one that binds you to not discuss your company's relationship with their customers, or who the customers are...

Answer 3

It is very common as part of a non-disclosure agreement.  It probably would have been a good idea to review these documents before signing, as now that she's signed she would have a VERY hard time filing a lawsuit against the company.  However, given the situation you have described, she seems to have made her own choices and left by her own decision.