Ontario: A 2023 non-compete threatens my new job — is it enforceable?

Scenario

You are a junior support employee who signed an Ontario employment agreement in 2023. After you join another employer, your former employer sends a non-compete demand. You are not a defined executive and did not sell a business, and you need to know whether you must leave the new job.

What the law says

On these terms, the 2023 non-compete is generally prohibited and void if Ontario’s ESA covers the employment and neither exception applies. ESA s.67.2 bans entry into non-competes on or after 25 October 2021, with exceptions for defined executives and qualifying business sales. A signature does not validate a prohibited clause. The rule does not automatically invalidate earlier agreements, genuine non-solicitation clauses or confidentiality duties; the substance of the restriction matters.

What you can claim

Request withdrawal of the demand and confirmation that the prohibited clause will not be enforced. If proceedings are brought, a lawyer can seek a ruling that the clause is unenforceable and oppose an injunction. The ESA ban does not set a fixed compensation payment for a demand letter. If separate unlawful retaliation or interference caused proven loss, get advice on a distinct remedy; court costs and damages are not automatic.

What the employee can do

1. Keep the 2023 agreement, signing date, duties and demand letter. Separate the competing-work restriction from solicitation and confidentiality terms, and confirm provincial rather than federal employment coverage.

2. Send the agreement and demand to an Ontario employment lawyer promptly, especially if an injunction is threatened. A reply can identify s.67.2, the agreement date and why neither exception applies. Keep former-employer confidential files out of the new workplace.

3. An ESA claim to Ontario’s Ministry of Labour generally has a two-year limit from the violation. For entering this 2023 agreement, the ordinary filing period may already have expired by October 2026; a recent demand does not automatically restart it or make the void clause valid. Ask about any distinct later violation and court defence. A served court document has its own response deadline and needs immediate attention.

Common misconception, corrected

A signature does not make a prohibited new Ontario non-compete valid. It also does not permit misuse of confidential information or invalidate every older restriction. US non-compete headlines do not determine this Ontario agreement.

Matching guides

Read Check the s.67.2 ban and exceptions.

Read Confirm Ontario ESA coverage.