that is good to know. after all it is generally realized that a contract requires that both parties get something of similar value. it's also not surprising as i've seen a great many clearly illegal questions and agreements on job applications. unfortunately for lower level jobs it may be enough to intimidate someone into not exercising their rights, or they may have no idea that they have "rights" and they can rarely afford checking with a lawyer ahead of time. the employer employee relationship has sadly deteriorated badly, particularly when you consider such legal fictions as "termination with or without cause", as if someone could ever be terminated without some reason, i.e. the employer acting randomly and irrationally, yet this has some weight in court, at least in wyoming. (they call it a "right to work" state, which means the employer has the right to be arbitrary and is hard to sue for even the most unfair practices). of course like all things legal, you ultimately have to hire a lawyer to know, and may have to go to court where the answer may change, and change again on appeal (which is a bad thing, if the law worked properly there would be no reason to appeal, obviously that's not the case). i rather suspect that the utility company has intimidated people with this clause before, since all too often the party that can spend the most on legal fees can bully the smaller party with the courts, another serious flaw in the current system that's become very popular. Bob Axtell wrote: > > Philip Stortz wrote: ------- > > > > > > > These agreements have little weight in some states, which have realized > that such agreements are too > onerous. Example: in Georgia, USA, such agreements can be signed all day > long, but in fact are null and void > after 3 years. This applies to NDA's and other documents as well. Other > states are adopting this as well. > Ask a good lawyer about the laws concerning employer-employee > relations.... if you can find one. Its > not as bad as you might think. Even in less astute states, very few of > these things are actually enforced. ----------- -- Bush himself, perhaps the truest of Wilson's disciples, has gone even further, declaring the United States' purpose is to eliminate evil itself.-- Does Bush think he is doing God's will, or does he think he is God? Such men are always remembered as the Lunatic tyrants they are, eventually. _______________________________________________ http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive View/change your membership options at http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist