Current Employer Blocked Me From New Job

I have been working as a department lead for a grocery store for four months. One of my distributors changed routes, leaving his sales rep job open. I interviewed for the position, and was told that my employer would be contacted if the distributor was going to make a job offer. The day after the interview, I was contacted by the interviewer, telling me that they had contacted my corporate office to seek their blessing. Four people from the other company told me that I had the job, and it was just waiting on my company to say okay. About a week later, I was told that my company told the distributor, "they see potential in me" and have "great plans for my future there" and the interviewer was told he must hire from within. As taking the job would have been about a 40% pay increase, I immediately offered to put my two weeks in if that's what I had to do to come work for them, and was told that it would still be seen as me leaving my current employer to come work for them.

My company is the largest account in our region for this distributor, and it is very apparent that they are "in bed together", so to speak.

I am very upset that my company just blocked me from taking a job that would have been a move up in my career, and offered more money than they would be willing to match. I know that I have not been there long enough for them to really have these grand plans, so how is this whole situation legal??

1 answer  |  asked Mar 28, 2012 8:53 PM [EST]  |  applies to Ohio

Answers (1)

Neil Klingshirn
As unemployment dips and labor markets tighten, employers are once again recognizing that they are only as good as their employees. While placing a priority on employee retention is usually good for employees, in your case it appears to be the reason your company interfered with your opportunity with its distributor.

It is not clear if your employer's interference is unlawful. It could be, under the theory of tortious interference. Interference is tortious, or unlawful, if done for the wrong reason, or in a wrong way. For example, if a property owner interfered with his neighbor's sale of a residence to an unwanted minority, and interfered by spray painting racial epithets on the house, the interference is wrongful both because the reason was wrong (unlawful discrimination) and done in a wrong way (vandalism).

In your case, the question is whether your employer's reason for interference was wrongful. The answer is not clear. They did it, they say, to retain a valued employee. Maybe the real reason was to prevent an underpaid employee from earning his or her true worth. While the law generally disfavors restraints of trade, the law of non-competes recognizes employee retention as a valid business interest.

The bottom line, I think, is that, unless you have solid evidence that the interference was wrongful, taking your employer to court for keeping you on board is not a high payoff activity. However, you still have your job, and you obviously have a lot going for you. Now that you know your worth, keep looking for better, or at least comparable, employment and, when you see a place to land, consider approaching your current employer about their plans for your advancement and an adjustment in pay.

posted by Neil Klingshirn  |  Mar 29, 2012 06:48 AM [EST]

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