Rhode Island § 28-59-3 - Rhode Island Noncompetition Agreement Act

§ 28-59-3. Enforceability.

(a) A noncompetition agreement shall not be enforceable against the following types of workers:

(1) An employee who is classified as nonexempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. §§ 201-219;

(2) Undergraduate or graduate students who participate in an internship or otherwise enter a short-term employment relationship with an employer, whether paid or unpaid, while enrolled at an educational institution;

(3) Employees age eighteen (18) or younger; or

(4) A low-wage employee.

(b) This section does not render void or unenforceable the remainder of a contract or agreement containing the unenforceable noncompetition agreement, nor does it preclude the imposition of a noncompetition restriction by a court, whether through preliminary or permanent injunctive relief or otherwise, as a remedy for a breach of another agreement or of a statutory or common law duty.

(c) Nothing in this section shall preclude an employer from entering into an agreement with an employee not to share any information, including after the employee is no longer employed by the employer, regarding the employer or the employment that is a trade secret.