WASHINGTON–U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) on Tuesday released the following statement on the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) finalized rule to ban employers from imposing non-compete agreements on their employees. The finalized rule is projected to increase wages by nearly $300 billion per year and expand career opportunities for about 30 million Americans.

“Non-compete agreements are terrible for workers and our economy – they suppress wages, stifle innovation, and undermine competition. Today’s action by the FTC puts power back into the hands of workers and budding entrepreneurs. Congress should pass our bipartisan legislation to ensure employers can never again use non-competes to protect their own interests at the expense of fair wages and economic growth,” said Murphy.

Murphy released a statement in support of the FTC’s proposed rule in January 2023. In February 2023, Murphy and U.S. Senator Todd Young reintroduced the Workforce Mobility Act, bipartisan legislation to limit the use of non-compete agreements that negatively impact American workers. In December 2021, Murphy and Young led a letter to the FTC and Department of Justice (DOJ) Antitrust Division to restrict the use of non-compete clauses in employment contracts to promote worker mobility.

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