Microsoft CTO Kevin Scott offered to match the compensation of OpenAI employees considering a departure from the company.
Microsoft exec says OpenAI employees can join with same compensation::Microsoft CTO Kevin Scott offered to match the compensation of OpenAI employees considering a departure from the company.
IIUC companies in the US can poach all they want. Non-poach agreements are not enforceable, I think.
It would be pretty anticompetitive to allow non-poach agreements, considering that the US uses at-will employment. If a competitor wants to make an offer to your employees, your employees should be free to accept that offer. At-will employment is a two-way street.
Most non-poaching clauses in non-competes specify that the person signing it can't recruit employees from their old work, usually for X number of years. Microsoft almost certainly didn't sign any non-competes and unless Sam Altman is the one making this offer there aren't any non-compete violations happening.
I'm not arguing they are, but that they aren't relevant at all in this case. They aren't even designed to address this situation (binding or otherwise).
The only thing I'm familiar with that resembles anti poaching laws in America is tampering rules in sports leagues but they have all these exemptions and such. Anti poaching laws in tech industry would be pretty catastrophic.