[Leaplist] [OT/PD] "Apple Exec Hired From IBM Ordered to Stop Work"

[Bryan J. Smith]

Steve Litt <slitt at troubleshooters.com> wrote:
> As you read Mark's contract, notice that the second he
> signed it, he was IBM's slave ... cut ...

It should be noted that this is an ideal time to pull the
"poison pill" clause.  Understand Mark could be terminated,
and left to dry.  With the "poison pill" clause, Mark would
at least continue to receive his salary, if IBM felt it
"worth the cost" to keep him from going to a competitor.

Instead, check #4, IBM could even withhold severance pay if
he is in violation of the agreement.  I.e., if they fired him,
then he went to Apple, then they had a judge tell him to "stop
work," they don't even have to give him any severance he was
due -- or request back any they paid prior!

Steve Litt <slitt at troubleshooters.com> wrote:
> And then there's that innocent sounding nondisclosure
> agreement. Certainly it's unethical to disclose the secrets
> of the company who fed and clothed you and your family. But
> most nondisclosure agreements are crafted so broadly as 
> to function as noncompete, perhaps ruining your chances to
> continue working in that field.

NDAs are a fact-of-life.  But as Steve mentioned, be careful
to check what the NDA covers.  The "Invention" and "Non-Compete"
clauses often get wrapped up in it, so make sure it only covers
  A)  What you're directly working on for the company,  
  B)  On their time,
  C)  With their resources
Anything that doesn't limit it to those three things is bad
news.

Steve Litt <slitt at troubleshooters.com> wrote:
> A lot of people say you can't work without signing such
> contracts. First -- that's not true ...

Indeed.  And if they pull it _after_ you signed and showed
up for work, leaving your previous employer, you can say
that signing it now is putting you under "duress."  It varies
for contractors, but for employees or under a contract "in
effect," they lose most if not all their legal standing to
force you to sign it.

In fact, I'm curious what happened to this gentlemen of over
20 years with IBM, when he only signed it more recently.
It must have been a promotion or other offer that prompted
it, which he could have turned down or negotiated a contract
modification (even noted in #11).

Steve Litt <slitt at troubleshooters.com> wrote:
> Every single mainframe programmer just signed this horrible
> contract, but a few of us PC types got together, consulted a
> lawyer, and basically said "no". 
> The IT director called a meeting, sat us down, and basically
> said "sign or you're gone". My key card was in my hand, ready
> to throw at him if he backed me into a corner. But he didn't.

Yep:  
A)  Get legal advice, and
B)  Be ready to walk out, nearly packed and card in hand

Steve Litt <slitt at troubleshooters.com> wrote:
> A couple weeks later there was another meeting, where they
> basically said "you don't have to sign this, but you'd 
> better not disclose our secrets, because getting sued by
> our firm will be the worst thing that ever happened to you".
> I was free to work elsewhere, and worked elsewhere often
> during the 10 years when the law firm was my client.

In other words, they had no legal standing and could only
offer oral arguments (which have no binding).

Steve Litt <slitt at troubleshooters.com> wrote:
> Read all the paperwork you'll be required to sign
> before giving notice at your current company.

Definitely Rule 1.  You have no legal standing if you do
not, and you might be unemployed as a result.

Rule 2 is to refuse to sign anything after you've already
started work there and they try to pull one on you.  That
pretty much violates most state laws on employment (unless
you sign it, of course), and you have a right to refuse.

IBM = 8,000 legal gorilla -- what was this guy thinking?!


-- 
Bryan J Smith          Professional, Technical Annoyance
b.j.smith at ieee.org    http://www.linkedin.com/in/bjsmith
--------------------------------------------------------
I don't have a "favorite Linux distro."  I use, develop
and support community efforts, often built around Linux.
Technology and solutions are my focus, not dragging in
assumptions, marketing and other concepts which dominate
non-community developed software, which I left long ago.


-- 
This message has been scanned for viruses and
dangerous content by MailScanner, and is
believed to be clean.