18/07/2023
Employee poaching has become rampant in recent years in Ghana. Employee poaching refers to the practice of one company recruiting an employee from a competing company. Employee poaching can be voluntary and involuntary. Voluntary poaching is when an individual willingly leaves his employment to take up the same or similar employment opportunity, usually with a better offer. Involuntary poaching is when an employee is enticed or induced by another person to leave his current employment, usually to accept an offer of employment with better remuneration, incentives, or opportunities.
Notable examples of employee poaching are some renowned media personalities leaving one media house for the other. Another example is Facebook recruiting some former employees of Twitter with its accompanied brouhaha associated with “Thread”, allegedly a clone app for “Twitter”.
Most employees are always looking for better opportunities to exit their current employment. Employers, therefore, use Restraint of Trade Agreements (RTAs) to safeguard their business interests, especially in employing professionals in their sector of operations. In Ghana, RTAs have become a common feature of most employment contracts. RTAs are a fetter on a person’s right to work. However, most employees ignore RTAs in their employment contracts until it is time for them to sever the employment relationship. This piece discusses the right to work and the application of RTAs in Ghana.
Take a read of my latest publication in today's edition of Business & Financial Times (Tuesday, 18th July 2023, on pages 8 & 16)
In recent years, contracts of employment especially for professional services executed between employers and employees in Ghana contain some provisions on restraint of trade. Restraint of Trade Agr…
