

Startup Poaches Groupon's Salespeople, Groupon Fires Off Legal Warning - techvibes
http://www.techvibes.com/blog/top-hat-monocle-poaches-groupons-salespeople-groupon-fires-off-legal-warning-2012-07-27

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tptacek
Headline discards context. The issue isn't that it's unlawful for THM to
target and hire Groupon associates. It's that Groupons have nonsolicits in
their contracts. Groupon is (reasonably) concerned that, having hired a quorum
of ex-Groupons, THM is now in a very good position to persuade those ex-
Groupons to ignore their nonsolicits and reach out to current Groupons.

Groupon hasn't told THM to stop poaching employees. It has simply warned THM
not to use ex-Groupons to do it.

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toomuchcoffee
_It's that Groupons have nonsolicits in their contracts._

It isn't that, either. It's that Groupon is rather fancifully implying that,
beyond being merely unseemly or in bad form, it is somehow "tantamount to
contractual interference" for THM to do so. It also implies that THM would
"expose itself to litigation" for encouraging Groupon employees to violate
their _non-competes_ , an even more baseless assertion.

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andrewdsouza
It is true. We ensure that the only people included in our recruiting process
haven't worked at the companies we hire from and we don't ask for referrals
from people we hire to avoid putting them in a compromising position.

We've interviewed well over 100 Groupon salespeople and have only made a
handful of offers. The reason people take our call is really because we're an
exciting company that's making a meaningful impact in education, not because
of unscrupulous hiring practices.

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toomuchcoffee
A very callow and pretentious move on Groupon's part, if true.

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techvibes
Full letter from Groupon's lawyer is attached to the Techvibes' article.

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toomuchcoffee
Right, but what it amounts to is a bald attempt at intimidation with no legal
standing. What they're saying, basically, is "we don't like that you're doing
this, and if you don't stop, you're going get whacked."

