This Working Life Are you working under a non-compete?
Nov 28, 2025
In this podcast, Paula McDonald, a renowned academic from QUT specializing in employment relations, teams up with Charles Cameron, CEO of the Recruitment, Consulting and Staffing Association. They delve into the intricacies of non-compete clauses and how nearly half of Australian workers are affected. Discussion spans government plans to ban these clauses for low-income earners, the chilling effect on job mobility, and how unfair restraints limit innovation. They also explore international perspectives and propose balanced reforms to protect both workers and businesses.
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What Non-Competes Actually Do
- Non-compete clauses are post-employment restraints that limit what a worker can do after leaving a job.
- They commonly stop workers joining competitors or starting similar businesses for set times or regions.
Planned Federal Ban For Lower Earners
- The Albanese government plans to ban non-compete clauses for workers earning below the high-income threshold.
- The reforms target low and middle income workers and are due to take effect in 2027.
Economic Cost And Innovation Drag
- Treasury estimates non-competes cost workers about $7 billion a year in lost wages.
- Restraints also reduce job mobility and can stifle innovation and new business formation.