Connect on LinkedIn, get sued under non-compete agreement?

This raises an interesting point. Does connecting with a former colleague on LinkedIn (or another form of social media) constitute a violation of  a non-compete agreement?

Here’s the 30 second version: TEKsystems Inc. has filed a lawsuit against former employee Brelyn Hammernik.  In this lawsuit, they claim that Hammernik is in violation of  a non-compete agreement because she is using LinkedIn to connect to (and solicit) people she used to work with while at TEKsystems.

This raises a couple of questions.  First, was there any explicit, or overt attempt to recruit her old co-workers from TEKsystems?  If not, is the act of connecting on LinkedIn enough to violate a non-compete agreement.  She downloaded contact information from her computer before leaving, but why wouldn’t she?  She spent time building a relationship with people; why would leaving a company now mean she couldn’t speak to any of them for a year (or whatever the term of her contract was)?

I remain in contact with people I used to work with, and I would think many of you do as well.  It’s a part of working with other people on a daily basis – you become friends, keep each other sharp professionally, maybe even send a birthday greeting from time to time.  Do these continued relationships violate a non-compete agreement?  I think not.

I’m curious to see where this case goes.  I’m also curious to know why TEKsystems Inc. has information about who their former employee connected with.  Did they actually search through every one of her possible contacts looking for a connection with her, or was she foolish enough to leave her profile public so the information could be seen?

At a minimum, we have this takeaway: when you leave a company, make sure all of your social media accounts are as private as you can make them, and de-friend your former employers.  Otherwise, you may be in hot water for trying to keep up a friendship with someone you used to work with.