Agreements between companies not to hire employees from other companies have attracted the attention of competition regulators, a European official said on Friday, amid concerns that such practices could illegally restrict employees’ employment opportunities. , reports Agerpres citing Reuters.
HandshakePhoto: Tanasin Srijaroensirikul / Alamy / Alamy / Profimedia
In recent years, the American Department of Justice has expanded its efforts to combat the so-called “no poach” type agreements (- an agreement between two or more companies not to hire each other’s employees – no). But in Europe this field was not one of the priorities.
This could change soon, said Olivier Guersent, Director General of the Directorate General for Competition (DG Comp) of the European Commission.
“And of course we are also looking at some practices that were previously less important on our radars, such as no-poach agreements,” Olivier Guersent said at a conference in New York, without giving details.
Antitrust lawyers say competition regulators in Portugal, France, Spain, Croatia, the Netherlands, Hungary, Poland, Greece, Lithuania, Romania and Germany have examined or taken action against these illegal arrangements.
The European Commission, the competition watchdog in the 27 EU member states, can fine companies up to 10% of their global turnover for violating antitrust laws and order companies to stop anti-competitive practices.
