Kentucky pizzeria threatens 24-year-old prospective business owner with lawsuit over an NDA they signed while working there as their first job at 17-years-old: 'I was 17 and just happy to get the job'

What is it with all of the frivolous NDAs that service workers are being forced to sign?

Every day, you hear and read more stories about baristas and other service workers who have been forced to sign an NDA in order to work entry-level service industry jobs, with half-baked excuses being given around protecting business operation and preparation processes, like they're dealing with a cure for cancer or some other miracle discovery.

While these are probably just elaborate scare tactics, the fact remains that being taught how to brew a cup of coffee or toss pizza dough during your first jobs as a teenager is not some great secret that you are able to, or need to, protect by strong-arming some teenager. We have been preparing these foods and beverages for at least the last 100 years, and their practice is common knowledge. 

And I'm sorry, but your processes don't need protecting either. It's no secret that running a successful restaurant is a miserably unforgiving line of business to be in, with razor-thin margins and both supply and demand that are treacherously vulnerable to shifting economic landscapes. But managing these businesses is more about tact and tenacity and not some great secret discovery like a miracle-cure or new technology that needs to be protected at all costs to keep the business, well, in business.

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  • 01
    A pizzeria owner cuts a pizza
    via Benu Marinescu

    The image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 02

    Signed a non compete at 17 for my first job, original owner is now threatening to sue me for opening my own business

    For context I put in my availability when I got hired, weekdays only, it was agreed upon, in writing. Eight months later my manager texts me Friday night asking me to come in Saturday because someone called out. I said no. Politely. Had plans with family I hadn't seen in months. She literally responded with "I hope you understand this reflects on how serious you take this job"
    via Opposite_Monitor1475
  • 03
    I make $14 an hour stocking shelves. I have been here long enough to know that saying yes every single time never once led to a raise, a thank you, nothing. So I just replied "understood" and continued playing on my phone. The audacity to frame MY boundaries as a character flaw is something I will never get over. These people genuinely believe they own you the moment they hand you a name tag
    via Opposite_Monitor1475
  • 04
    Cheezburger Image 10623079936
    via Romain Chollet

    The image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • What these are, and all they are, are aggressive attempts to stamp out any fresh-faced newcomers from attempting to strike out on their own against the employers' own already failing business model. 

    Whether or not these lawsuits would actually hold water doesn't change the fact that a threat of a lawsuit alone holds a promise of a costly battle that most people, let alone a new business owner who has just sunk everything into the business to get it up and running, can afford. 

    After receiving what appeared to be a very official legal document from a previous employer informing them that they were going to be sued for breaching the terms of an NDA, they had signed at just 17 years old, this new business owner, who had just opened a pizzeria of their own, went seeking advice as to what they should do in the face of this legal threat. 

  • 05
    SierraStar7 Don't ever respond to after-hours communication from work. If they ask why you didn't respond, tell them you didn't have your phone. If they try to buy you into responding going forward, ask them if your schedule is changing to on- call & how much is the pay differential for being on-call. Watch them flounder & stammer that they don't have on-call or pay for it. Let them know when they do, you'll be happy to keep your phone with you going forward. Continue to not respond to after-hou
    via Opposite_Monitor1475
  • 06
    GTS_84 Oh no, with an attitude like this you won't be considered for some supervisor position that pays maybe $3 an hour more and comes with twice the work and five times the headaches./s
    via Opposite_Monitor1475
  • 07
    A pizza on a table is carefully removed by the owner
    via Proper Quality Shandis

    The image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 08
    darkage_raven You can only take $14/h so seriously. If you want serious that starts near $26.50.
    via Opposite_Monitor1475
  • 09
    Cottager_Northeast "Your lack of management skill shouldn't interfere with my personal life when I'm off the clock and wasn't scheduled ahead of time."
    via Opposite_Monitor1475
  • 10
    I worked at a local pizza shop when I was 17, first real job. On day one they had me sign a stack of papers and one of them was apparently a non compete saying I wouldnt open a competing food business within 15 miles for 10 years. Im 24 now. Made some extra money and finally I'm able to open my own small pizza place, found a location, signed a lease three weeks ago. Somehow the original owner found out, small town people talk I guess, and I just got a letter from what looks like an actual attorn
    via Opposite_Monitor1475
  • 11
    I genuinely barely remember signing anything, I was 17 and just happy to get the job. Does a contract signed by a minor even hold up? And even if it does somehow, 10 years and 15 miles for a part time job that paid me $8.50 an hour seems absolutely insane. Do I actually need to hire someone or is this something I can respond to myself? Location: Kentucky
    via Opposite_Monitor1475
  • 12
    Bitter-Whole-7290 A non compete for working at a pizzeria as a teenager? That's wild.
    via Opposite_Monitor1475
  • 13
    Background_Bus263 It's easy to threaten to sue, but a 10 year non completed signed by a 17 year old working in a pizza shop is hilariously unenforceable.
    via Opposite_Monitor1475
  • 14
    TallLaw85 The 15 mile restriction is likely reasonable and enforceable, but the 10 year restriction likely isn't. They can certainly try to sue you, it may be most cost effective to just hire an attorney to respond back in the hopes they drop it.
    via Opposite_Monitor1475
  • 15
    clov... Kentucky is a reasonableness state when it comes to noncompetes. If this bozo decides to sue, which I would guess he does not, I would heavily suspect a Kentucky judge to throw this out. 10 years and being a minor when you signed it are both very unreasonable. A little research says that Kentucky allows you to file for a declaratory judgment. Basically, you can pay a lawyer and file in court to say that you believe this contract is unreasonable and should be considered fulfilled. It's a
    via Opposite_Monitor1475

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