NC H973

Employers must provide workers with proposed restrictive employment agreements at least 14 days before employment begins or compensation increases, along with a standardized notice from the NC Department of Labor explaining worker rights

Noncompete agreements are limited to 1 year for protecting trade secrets or customer relationships, or 5 years when connected to the sale or creation of a business where the worker is a substantial owner

Restrictive agreements (except confidentiality and training-repayment provisions) are prohibited for workers earning below the state's annual mean wage and unenforceable if the worker is terminated without cause or resigns due to employer misconduct

No-business and no-recruit agreements are capped at 6 months, nonsolicitation agreements at 1 year, and training-repayment agreements at 2 years with prorated repayment requirements

Employers face civil penalties up to $5,000 per worker per agreement for knowingly entering prohibited agreements, and courts are barred from modifying unenforceable agreements to make them valid