Non-compete agreements in labor law

The worker has knowledge about the manufacturing, marketing, and customer relations of the establishment in terms of both technical and economical throughout the period of employment. There is a possibility that the worker may use such information during or after the termination of the contract in line with the worker's own interests or at companies that are rivals to the worker's employer. Certain protection measures are prescribed by law since this may harm the employer's interest. The first of these is the worker's non-compete liability as an extension to the duty of loyalty during the employment contract. The worker's non-compete liability shall expire with the expiry of the employment contract. Therefore, as required by article 444 and other articles of the Code of Obligations, it is permitted that the noncompetition may be regulated under certain terms and limits in order to prevent the worker to engage in acts which may constitute competition. In this regard, it is possible to prevent the worker to compete with his/her previous employer under certain terms and limits after the expiry of the employment contract. Our study investigates the concepts of non-compete obligations and non-compete agreement in the first place, and the investigation is based on the non-compete agreement drawn up in accordance with the article 444 and other articles of the Code of Obligations for the period following the expiry of the employment contract. Non-compete agreement is subject to strict validity conditions and limitations as required by article 444 and other articles of the Code of Obligations in order to balance the interests of the worker and employer. Therefore, the legal status of the non-compete agreements that do not have the conditions and limitations anticipated by the law, sanctions, and the judge's intervention on the agreement are investigated in our study as well. The rights of the employer and the legal remedies in case of violation of the non-compete agreements, concluded in compliance with the law, by the worker are evaluated separately. Finally, circumstances leading to termination of the non-compete agreements and the circumstances which may be encountered are investigated within the scope of Supreme Court decisions.