Often, a good way to find new hires is to look at your competitors’ employees. But what happens when the competitor claims you poached workers who were under contract? Read the facts of this real-life case and decide — who won?

The facts: A company hired two employees that were working for a competitor. The competitor sued. Why? According to the competitor, the employees had signed a year-long contract in exchange for being put through a training and certification program. By hiring them, the company had interfered with the contract.

The employer said: The two men were “at will” employees, and free to leave the competing company at any time. However, the competitor said the company was intentionally “stealing” employees after they had paid to train and certify them.

Who won: The competitor.

Why: The two employees were under a contract. Also, the competitor said it had explained that fact to the employer once it knew what was going on, but the hiring process continued anyway.

Competitors can be a great place to look for new recruits. But as this case shows, companies have to be careful about employees who have contracts and other employment agreements. The employees choose to leave, but the new employer can still be held liable.

Cite: CRST Van Expedited, Inc. v. Werner Enterprises, Inc.

Tags: competitors' employees, contracts, legal recruiting