Software Developers Guild

Waivers in severance agreements

admin — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 23:52:18 +0000

Here’s an interesting link giving advice to employers for crafting severance agreements. Was worth a look to consider the many ways that employers attempt to circumvent the law. For employees it may make sense to sign one of these if you are well compensated for it. A company is willing to pay you to eliminate the risk of costly litigation.

http://www.metrocorpcounsel.com/current.php?artType=view&artMonth=February&artYear=2010&EntryNo=10619

Mandatory arbitration on way out

admin — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 22:22:59 +0000

According to the following, a new bill has been introduced in Congress that would ban mandatory arbitration clauses in employment agreements. I don’t know if it’s likely to pass, but it would definitely be a good step toward ameliorating employer abuses and increasing corporate transparency.

http://www.24-7pressrelease.com/press-release/arbitration-fairness-act-would-ban-mandatory-arbitration-for-employees-130936.php

Mass. House Bill 1794 to limit non-competes

admin — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 13:15:58 +0000

Here’s the link to the full text of the bill that will severely limit non-competes.

The bill will likely be revised to apply only to employees making less than $75,000 per year. Right now, Massachusetts does not have adequate laws regarding non-competes. Rather, it relies on a series of inconsistent judicial history of cases. Since the purpose of this blog is not to take positions on specific legislation, but rather to educate on the existing situation, I’ll refrain from commenting on the specifics in the bill. It’s set to be heard Oct 7 at 10:30 am at the Sate House.

The Boston Globe has an article on how your views can be heard.

For an interesting perspective on the bill, see this article.

Mass. set to vote on non-competes

admin — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 13:12:15 +0000

As the Massachusetts legislature sets out to limit the scope of non-competes, the Boston Globe has an interesting column about non-competes and their negative effect on innovation, with numerous examples and thorough research.

Dear Captains of Industry: Where is the Data to Support Your Position on Noncompetes?

Hello world!

admin — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 14:30:18 +0000

Welcome to the Software Developers Guild. We are a non-profit organization dedicated to helping software developers maximize their employment potential. Let’s face it. Software developers are generally–eh, what’s the word?–unsophisticated about business matters. Employers are well aware of this. Bad combination.

We’re here to help change that. We’ll provide simple advice about industry practices, give you honest advice about what you can and cannot accept in employment agreements, stock options, and all sorts of business issues that affect your financial situation.

Non-competes, non-solicitation, stock options. All these things are complex. But more importantly, they’re all created by a company to benefit the company, its executives and investors. Sometimes, they’re very fair to employees, sometimes not. It’s hard to tell the difference unless you are a lawyer or have seen both sides. We’re here to change that.