A bill to further limit the enforceability of noncompete agreements for certain terminated employees is heading to the desk of Gov. Abigail Spanberger.
If signed, Senate Bill 170 would add subsection C to Va. Code § 40.1-28.7:8, stating that a noncompete agreement between an employer and employee is not enforceable “if such employer discharges such employee from employment without providing severance benefits or other monetary payment to such employee, unless such employer discharges such employee for cause.”
Under SB 170, the severance benefits must be disclosed upon execution of the noncompete agreement.
The bill will also allow an employee to bring a civil action against a former employer who violates the section, broadening the language from just “low-wage” employees being able to file suit under the current statute.
Employers who violate the terms of the new subsection can be subject to a civil penalty of $10,000 per violation under Virginia law.
The bill continues a trend in federal and state governments embracing a push toward restricting the use of noncompete agreements by employers, most notably with the ultimately unsuccessful 2024 Federal Trade Commission rule that sought to ban noncompetes nationally.
In Virginia, the General Assembly passed a bill in 2025 to expand the definition of “low-wage employee” to an employee entitled to overtime compensation under the Fair Labor Standards Act, making all employees classified as “non-exempt” under the FLSA barred from...
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 20. The United States is using the UN Security Council to spread false information about Iran and its peaceful nuclear program, the Permanent Mission of Iran to the UN said i...