HR Policy Association Statement on Court's Partial Block of FTC Non-Compete Ban

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                          Contact: Amanda Beck
July 03, 2024 [email protected]

HR Policy Association Statement on Court's Partial Block of FTC Non-Compete Ban 

Large Employers Strongly Object to Rule and Support Use of Non-Compete Agreements, Especially for Senior Executives

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction on the FTC's ban on 

noncompete agreements, delaying its effective date for the plaintiffs in the case. The decision does 

not apply nationwide. In response, Tim Bartl, President and CEO of HR Policy Association, which 

represents chief human resource officers of nearly 400 of the largest employers in the United States, 

offers this statement:

“HR Policy Association is encouraged by the Court’s decision to partially block the FTC’s 

rule banning most non-compete agreements. The decision sends a clear message that FTC 

likely violated the Administrative Procedure Act and exceeded its statutory authority by 

issuing the ban. In our comments filed with the Commission when the rule was proposed, the 

Association articulated our firm belief that the Commission lacks the authority to issue such a 

rule. We also stated that the rule itself is an excessively broad ban that unjustifiably prohibits 

the reasonable use of sensibly tailored agreements to protect recognizable business interests.

The Association looks forward to a full judicial resolution of this matter and is fully prepared 

to work with all stakeholders on a reasonable approach to non-compete agreements that 

targets any misuse while preserving their continued reasonable use to protect legitimate 

investments.”

Read more on the Association’s position on preserving the responsible use of non-compete 

agreements here.

Tim Bartl and Gregory Hoff are available for media interviews.

HR Policy Association’s April 2023 comments to the FTC on the proposed rule can be found here: 

https://www.hrpolicy.org/getmedia/69ec55cb-07f7-46b1-b437-8617ff858374/HRPA-FTC-Non-Compete-NPRM-Comments.pdf 

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HR Policy Association is the lead organization representing chief human resource officers of major employers. The Association consists of nearly 400 of the largest corporations doing business in the United States and globally, and these employers are represented in the organization by their most senior human resource executive. Collectively, their companies employ more than 11 million employees in the United States, over nine percent of the private sector workforce, and 20 million employees worldwide. They have a combined market capitalization of more than $8 trillion. These senior corporate officers participate in the Association because of their commitment to improving the direction of human resource policy. Their objective is to use the combined power of the membership to act as a positive influence to better public policy, the HR marketplace, and the human resource profession. For more information visit www.hrpolicy.org.