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Misusing NDAs: are they a thing of the past?

Journalist: Yoana Cholteeva, People Management

ended 10. May 2023

For tomorrow's news run of People Management (https://www.peoplemanagement.co.uk/#gref) we are writing an analysis article about the UK's Legal Services Board (LSB)s which has launched a call for evidence and information to inform if a strengthened regulatory approach is needed to address the misuse of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs).

The regulatory body has said that while NDAs are used to protect sensitive commercial information, recent media coverage has raised public awareness of the misuse of NDAs to silence victims of misconduct in the workplace and highlighted patterns of misuse in particular sectors of the economy such as the arts, further education, policing and advertising.

For this reason, we are looking to hear from employment lawyers and relevant professionals 

  1. In what instances do NDAs become problematic and threaten the ability of an employee to ensure their safety?
  2. In your view, do the wrongdoing associated with NDAs outweigh their advantages? Are any extra regulations necessary?
  3. Could NDAs become a thing of the past or will they be crucial in some industries for the foreseeable?

    Thanks,
    Yoana

     

1 responses from the Newspage community

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Debbie Porter
Managing Director at Destination Digital Marketing
NDAs for good and bad leavers is a great idea when it comes to protecting commercially sensitive information to prevent someone 'going rogue'.

The misuse of NDAs to silence victims is rife, however. With revelations of sexual misconduct by senior figures at the CBI, and recent reports that sexual harassment whistleblowing has risen in the financial services sector, NDAs are being used to keep statistics hidden and work against the people they should be setting out to help in the first place.

When conflicts occur in businesses due to harassment, HR teams are mobilised to neutralise risks to the business, and some of the time it's the victim that is being neutralised rather than the perpetrator. The spirit of laws passed to stamp out sexism, racism and homophobia is to support the victims rather than give legal precedents to allow companies to pay their way out of a corner. I would call for transparency on the reasons for NDAs to remove this tactic and promote better conduct.