Google, Apple and Others Accused of 'No Poaching' Deal

lightbox32 writes "According to the Wall Street Journal, several of the US's largest technology companies, which include Google, Apple, Intel, Adobe, Intuit and Pixar Animation, are in the final stages of negotiations with the Justice Department to avoid a court battle over whether they colluded to hold down wages by agreeing not to poach each other's employees. 'The Justice Department would have to convince a court not just that such accords existed, but that workers had suffered significant harm as a result. The companies may not want to take a chance in court. If the government wins, it could open the floodgates for private claimants, even a class action by employees. A settlement would allow the Justice Department to halt the practice, without the companies having to admit to any legal violations.'"

Comments

The devil in the details

[alphatel]

The following companies confirmed they were questioned but have been relieved of the Justice Department investigation:

IBM
Microsoft
Yahoo
Genentech


The agency has decided not to pursue charges against companies that had what it believes were legitimate reasons for agreeing not to poach each other's employees, said people familiar with the matter. Instead, it's focusing on cases in which it believes the non-solicit agreement extended well beyond the scope of any collaboration.

Re:The devil in the details

[commodore64_love]

I hope you're being sarcastic.

Collusion of any kind should never be allowed, as it distorts freedom and hurts consumers (and workers).

One of the reasons I quit IEEE is because I got tired of reading articles from them about how the government needs to allow more H1B1 visas to hire foreign engineers/programmers. Clearly IEEE was colluding with corporations and representing their interests. Why would I want to face competition from Temp Engineers willing to work at $15/hour? If companies face a shortage, let them hire some unemployed or fresh-out-of-college Americans rather than import workers. So I stepped sending money to IEEE.

Re:And this is a bad thing?

[Anonymous Coward]

You know what? You're absolutely right. Industry should have the absolute word on what they do for their hiring practices.

They are private companies. If they want to do these things, they should be able.

If they want to not hire old people... Tough, it's private industry, man!

Or black people. Now, I'm not a racist. Many of my friends are black. But if a private company wants to refuse employment to black people, who am I to tell them "no, you can't make private business decisions about your private business"! God, we live in such a nanny-state these days.

And those disableds, you know, the funny-looking, wheelchair ones. If the boss doesn't want those guys cramping their style, I say, give them the boot.

And if people want to unionize? Tough shit! The boss owns the company, not the unions, not the gub'ment, so they should keep their gritty hands off.

I am really afraid that the openness of private industry is inhibited by preventing hiring decisions. Think of the economic damage caused by letting all these undesirables get hired! Can you imagine? Some of them might actually make a living!

</hyperbole> Damn, the Reagan era and all of the bullshit that followed has really contaminated people. Employees being able to "play the field" and better negotiate their salary is a good thing. For crying out loud, even you free market idiots in the audience should like it, because it allows employee wages to be set by the free market. But some people will go so far to defend the actions of corporate oligarchs that they are willingly blind to such realities...