FTC taking closer look at noncompetes: What recent crackdown means for employers

Noncompetes can touch every industry, and lately, there has been an uptick in noncompete litigation and confusion among the masses. Urban myths that noncompetes “aren’t worth the paper they’re written on” and have been “banned by the federal government” persist. Meanwhile, even under the Trump administration, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has actively targeted certain industries for overuse of noncompetes. And right here in Kansas, our newly enacted noncompete statute is already becoming the subject of litigation. In this climate, clarity on the current regulatory reality is essential for businesses.

Recent FTC scrutiny 

Seemingly undeterred by the failure of its 2024 final rule banning noncompete agreements, the FTC signaled last month that it will continue combating agreements it finds “unfair and anticompetitive.”

On April 15, 2026, the FTC ordered pest-control company Rollins, Inc., to cease enforcement of noncompete agreements against its employees. According to the FTC’s press release, Rollins imposed noncompete agreements on nearly all its employees (more than 18,000 nationwide), typically prohibiting them from working for another pest-control provider within a 75-mile radius of a Rollins location for two years after ending their employment with Rollins.