Employment Contract Template
An employment contract is a signed agreement that sets the term, duties, pay, benefits, confidentiality, invention ownership and exit terms for one employee. Choose at-will or a fixed term, switch clauses on or off, and pick the work state to see its non-compete, non-solicitation and invention rules, then download a PDF or Word file. Rules checked October 2026.
Parties
Sets governing law and the state checks for non-competes, non-solicitation, invention assignment, exempt salaries and Montana's good-cause rule.
Position and term
e.g. "the Chief Executive Officer"
Completes "Employee's duties include ...". List three or four core responsibilities.
Compensation and benefits
Completes "Employee is eligible for ...". Leave blank for no bonus sentence.
Clauses
Termination and disputes
Resignation notice the employee is asked to give.
Signed for the company by
Illinois limits invention assignment
765 ILCS 1060/2 protects inventions made on the employee's own time. The agreement includes the carve-out as the written notice the statute requires.
Employment Agreement
This Employment Agreement (the "Agreement") is made on October 12, 2026 between Northline Analytics LLC, with its address at 325 N Wells St, Suite 700, Chicago, IL 60654 (the "Company"), and Jordan Lee, residing at 2140 W Cortland St, Chicago, IL 60647 ("Employee").
1. Position and Duties
The Company employs Employee as Senior Data Analyst, reporting to the Chief Executive Officer. Employee's duties include building client reporting dashboards, maintaining the data pipeline, reviewing analyses prepared by junior analysts, and presenting results to clients. Employee will also perform other duties the Company reasonably assigns that fit the position.
Employee will work at the Company's Chicago office, with up to two remote days per week. This is a full-time position with a regular schedule of about 40 hours per week. Employee will follow the Company's written policies as they apply to Employee.
2. Start Date and At-Will Employment
Employment begins on November 2, 2026. Employment is at will: Employee or the Company may end it at any time, with or without cause or advance notice, subject only to the notice request in the Termination section. Nothing in this Agreement promises employment for any period, and only a written agreement signed by Employee and the Company's Chief Executive Officer can change this.
3. Compensation
The Company will pay Employee a base salary of $98,000 per year, paid twice a month on the Company's regular payroll schedule, less applicable taxes and withholdings. The position is classified as exempt from overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act and applicable state law.
Employee is eligible for an annual discretionary bonus of up to 10% of base salary, based on company and individual performance. Unless this Agreement says otherwise, any bonus is earned only if Employee is employed on the payment date.
The Company will review compensation at least once a year and may increase it in its discretion.
4. Benefits and Paid Time Off
Employee may join the Company's group medical, dental and vision plans, with the Company paying 80% of the employee premium, and its 401(k) plan with a 4% match. Employee receives 18 days of paid time off per year, accrued each pay period, plus the Company's 8 paid holidays. Paid sick leave is provided as state and local law require. Benefit plans are governed by their plan documents, and the Company may change or end them as the plans and the law allow.
5. Expense Reimbursement
The Company will reimburse reasonable and necessary business expenses Employee incurs in performing the job, under an accountable plan. Employee will submit an expense report with receipts or other records showing the amount, date, place and business purpose of each expense within 60 days after it is paid or incurred, and will return any advance or reimbursement that exceeds the substantiated amount within 120 days. Reimbursements made under these rules are not treated as wages.
6. Confidential Information
During and after employment, Employee will keep the Company's confidential information secret and use it only to perform the job. Confidential information includes non-public information about customers, pricing, finances, business plans, software, data and trade secrets, but not information that is public through no fault of Employee. When employment ends, Employee will return all Company property and documents.
Nothing in this Agreement prevents Employee from discussing wages or working conditions, reporting possible violations of law to a government agency, or testifying truthfully. Under 18 U.S.C. § 1833(b), Employee will not be held liable under any trade secret law for disclosing a trade secret in confidence to a government official or an attorney solely to report or investigate a suspected violation of law, or in a sealed court filing.
7. Inventions
Employee assigns to the Company all rights in inventions, works of authorship, designs and improvements that Employee creates, alone or with others, during employment and that relate to the Company's business or result from work for the Company. Employee will sign documents reasonably needed to confirm the Company's ownership.
This assignment does not apply to an invention that qualifies under 765 ILCS 1060/2: one Employee developed entirely on Employee's own time without using the Company's equipment, supplies, facilities or trade secret information, unless it relates to the Company's business or actual or demonstrably anticipated research or development, or results from work Employee performed for the Company. This paragraph is the written notice of that limit that state law requires.
8. Non-Solicitation
During employment and for 12 months after it ends, Employee will not, directly or through others, (a) solicit any customer that Employee dealt with during the last 12 months of employment to move its business away from the Company, or (b) solicit any Company employee to leave the Company. General advertising not aimed at Company customers or employees is not solicitation.
9. Termination
Employee agrees to give at least 14 days' written notice of resignation when possible. The Company may waive the notice period and end employment sooner.
When employment ends, the Company will pay all earned wages, and any accrued paid time off that state law or Company policy requires, on the schedule state law requires.
10. Dispute Resolution
Any dispute arising out of this Agreement or Employee's employment will be decided by the state or federal courts for the county where Employee works in Illinois, and both parties consent to their jurisdiction.
11. Governing Law
This Agreement is governed by the laws of the State of Illinois, where Employee works, without regard to conflict-of-law rules.
12. General Terms
This Agreement is the entire agreement between the parties about employment and replaces any earlier offer letter or discussion. It can be changed only in a writing signed by both parties. If any part of it is unenforceable, the rest stays in effect. The Company may assign this Agreement to a successor to its business; Employee may not assign it. Notices must be in writing and delivered by hand, mail or email to the addresses above or a later address a party designates. The parties may sign electronically and in counterparts.
Northline Analytics LLC
By: Priya Raman
Title: Chief Executive Officer
Date:
Employee
Jordan Lee
Date:
Prepared with the Jupid employment contract template. Not legal advice; have an employment attorney review before use.
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How the Employment Contract Generator Works
Set the basics
Enter the parties, job, duties, pay and benefits, and choose at-will employment or a fixed term with an end date.
Pick the clauses
Switch expense reimbursement, confidentiality, inventions, non-compete, non-solicitation and severance on or off. The work state rewrites or drops clauses its law does not allow.
Review and download
Read the warnings, save the agreement as a PDF or Word file, and have it reviewed before signing.
What an Employment Contract Covers
The generator builds these sections, numbered in order, with the optional ones only when switched on:
- Position and duties: title, manager, location, core duties and schedule.
- Term:at-will employment, a fixed term with an end date, or Montana's probationary period.
- Compensation: salary or hourly rate, pay frequency, FLSA classification and any bonus.
- Benefits and paid time off, governed by the plan documents.
- Expense reimbursement under an accountable plan (optional).
- Confidential information, with the whistleblower immunity notice that the Defend Trade Secrets Act asks employers to include (optional).
- Inventions, with the state carve-out where one applies (optional).
- Non-competition and non-solicitation, adjusted or dropped by state (optional).
- Termination notice, a cause definition when needed, and final pay.
- Severance in exchange for a release (optional).
- Dispute resolution, governing law and general terms, then signatures.
When You Need a Contract and When an Offer Letter Is Enough
Most US employment is at will, and most small employers hire with an offer letter, a handbook and, for anyone who sees sensitive information, a short confidentiality and invention assignment agreement. A full contract is common in these situations:
- Executives, general managers and other key hires who negotiate their terms.
- Employees with access to trade secrets, source code, pricing or major customer accounts.
- Fixed-term roles: a seasonal manager, a one-year project lead, a contract to cover a leave.
- Promised severance, a guaranteed bonus, equity or a relocation package.
- Licensed professionals whose contracts set notice periods, such as physicians and senior sales staff.
For hourly and entry-level staff, an at-will offer letter is usually enough, and a long contract adds little. Before hiring at all, check whether the worker is an employee or a contractor; the 1099 vs W-2 calculator compares the cost of each.
Non-Compete Rules by State in 2026
There is no federal ban on non-competes. The FTC's 2024 rule was set aside in Ryan LLC v. FTC (N.D. Tex. 2024), the FTC voted in September 2025 to drop its appeal, and a February 2026 notice removed the rule from the Code of Federal Regulations. The FTC still brings cases against individual employers, and state law decides whether a given non-compete holds. In the states below the generator drops the clause or shows a warning:
| State | Status | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| California | Void | California voids employee non-compete agreements wherever and whenever they were signed, and makes it unlawful to include one in an employment contract. (Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 16600, 16600.1, 16600.5) |
| Minnesota | Void | Minnesota voids non-compete agreements signed on or after July 1, 2023, except in the sale or dissolution of a business. (Minn. Stat. § 181.988) |
| North Dakota | Void | North Dakota voids contracts that restrain anyone from a lawful profession, trade or business, except in the sale of a business's goodwill and partnership dissolution. (N.D. Cent. Code § 9-08-06) |
| Oklahoma | Void | Oklahoma voids employee non-compete agreements; an employer may only bar a former employee from directly soliciting its established customers. (Okla. Stat. tit. 15, §§ 219A, 219B) |
| Colorado | Limited | Colorado allows non-competes only for highly compensated workers ($130,014 in 2026) and only to protect trade secrets, with a separate signed notice given before the offer is accepted. Customer non-solicitation needs 60% of that figure ($78,008.40). (Colo. Rev. Stat. § 8-2-113) |
| District of Columbia | Limited | The District of Columbia allows non-competes only for highly compensated employees ($162,164 or more in 2026), for up to 365 days, with the terms given 14 days before the start date. (D.C. Code § 32-581.01 et seq.) |
| Illinois | Limited | Illinois voids non-competes for employees earning $75,000 a year or less and non-solicitation clauses at $45,000 or less (rising to $80,000 and $47,500 in 2027), and requires 14 calendar days to review and written advice to consult an attorney. (820 ILCS 90/10, 90/20) |
| Maine | Limited | Maine bans non-competes for workers earning at or below 400% of the federal poverty level (about $63,840 in 2026), requires disclosure before the offer and a copy 3 business days before signing, and delays effect until one year of work or six months after signing. (Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 26, § 599-A) |
| Maryland | Limited | Maryland voids non-competes for employees earning 150% of the state minimum wage or less ($46,800 a year at $15.00 an hour). (Md. Code, Lab. & Empl. § 3-716) |
| Massachusetts | Limited | Massachusetts bans non-competes for non-exempt employees, caps them at 12 months, and requires the agreement with the formal offer or 10 business days before the start date, garden leave or other agreed pay, and notice of the right to consult counsel. (Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 149, § 24L) |
| New Hampshire | Limited | New Hampshire bans non-competes for low-wage employees (200% of the federal minimum wage or less, $30,160 a year) and requires giving a copy before the offer is accepted. (N.H. Rev. Stat. §§ 275:70, 275:70-a) |
| Oregon | Limited | Oregon voids non-competes unless the employee is exempt, earns more than $119,541 (2026), receives the written agreement two weeks before starting, and the term is 12 months or less. (Or. Rev. Stat. § 653.295) |
| Rhode Island | Limited | Rhode Island bans non-competes for non-exempt employees, low-wage employees (250% of the federal poverty level or less, about $39,900), students and workers 18 or younger. (R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-59-3) |
| Tennessee | Limited | Tennessee bars non-competes, from July 1, 2026, for employees earning less than $70,000 in annualized compensation. (Tenn. Pub. Ch. 934 (2026), HB 1034) |
| Virginia | Limited | Virginia bans non-competes for low-wage employees (average weekly earnings below the state average weekly wage, about $78,365 a year) and for every employee entitled to FLSA overtime. A non-compete is also unenforceable against an employee discharged without cause unless severance was disclosed at signing and paid. (Va. Code § 40.1-28.7:8) |
| Washington | Limited | Washington voids non-competes for employees earning $126,858.83 or less in 2026, caps them at 18 months, and requires disclosing the terms in writing no later than acceptance of the offer. A 2026 law (HB 1155) voids nearly all non-competes from June 30, 2027. (RCW 49.62.020) |
| Wyoming | Limited | Wyoming voids non-competes signed on or after July 1, 2025, except for executive and management personnel and their professional staff, trade secret protection, the sale of a business, and repayment of relocation or training costs. Non-competes for physicians are void. (Wyo. Stat. § 1-23-108) |
Elsewhere courts enforce non-competes that protect a legitimate business interest and are reasonable in length, area and scope. Florida moved the other way: its 2025 CHOICE Act makes non-competes easier to enforce for employees earning more than twice the county's average wage. Several states, including Texas, also limit non-competes for physicians and other health care workers.
Invention Assignment Limits by State
California Labor Code § 2870 bars assigning an invention the employee developed entirely on their own time without the employer's equipment, supplies, facilities or trade secret information, unless it relates to the employer's business or research or results from work for the employer. § 2872 requires giving the employee written notice of that rule, so for California the generator quotes § 2870 in the agreement. These states have similar laws:
| State | Statute | Written notice required |
|---|---|---|
| California | California Labor Code § 2870 | Yes |
| Delaware | Delaware Code title 19, § 805 | No |
| Illinois | 765 ILCS 1060/2 | Yes |
| Kansas | Kansas Statutes § 44-130 | Yes |
| Minnesota | Minnesota Statutes § 181.78 | Yes |
| New Jersey | New Jersey Statutes § 34:1B-265 | No |
| New York | New York Labor Law § 203-f | No |
| North Carolina | North Carolina General Statutes § 66-57.1 | No |
| Utah | Utah Code § 34-39-3 | No |
| Washington | RCW 49.44.140 | Yes |
In every other state the generator still excludes own-time inventions, which keeps the clause in line with the most common rule.
At Will, Fixed Term, Montana and Governing Law
An at-will agreement lets either side end employment at any time for any lawful reason; the contract adds structure (notice, confidentiality, inventions) without promising a job for a period. A fixed-term agreement runs to an end date and allows early termination only for cause or on the agreed notice, so ending it early without cause can cost the remaining pay. The generator adds a cause definition whenever the term is fixed or severance depends on it.
Montana is the exception to at-will employment. Once the probationary period ends (12 months when the employer sets none, extendable to 18), the Wrongful Discharge from Employment Act allows discharge only for good cause, so a Montana at-will agreement here uses a probationary period clause instead.
Governing lawfollows the work state. That matters most in California: Labor Code § 925 lets an employee who mainly lives and works there void a clause that requires litigating or arbitrating outside California or applies another state's law, unless the employee had a lawyer negotiate it. Minnesota's non-compete law has a similar bar.
Expense Reimbursement Under an Accountable Plan
Reimbursements are tax-free to the employee when the plan is accountable: the expense has a business connection, the employee substantiates it, and any excess is returned (Treas. Reg. § 1.62-2). Under the IRS fixed-date safe harbor, receipts within 60 days and excess advances returned within 120 days are timely, which is what the clause says. Payments under a plan that misses these rules are wages.
Some states make reimbursement mandatory regardless of the contract. California Labor Code § 2802 requires employers to cover all necessary expenses employees incur doing their jobs, including a reasonable share of a personal phone used for work. Collect reports with the expense report template, and see the accountable plan guide for how owners of S corporations use the same rules.
Worked Example: A Senior Hire in Illinois
Northline Analytics in Chicago hires Jordan Lee as a senior data analyst at $98,000a year, exempt, at will. The agreement includes expense reimbursement, confidentiality, inventions and a 12-month non-solicitation clause. Because Illinois has an invention statute (765 ILCS 1060/2) that requires written notice, the inventions clause carries the carve-out and says it is that notice. The non-solicitation clause stands because the salary is above Illinois's $45,000 floor for non-solicits.
Switch on the non-compete and the warnings explain the Illinois rules: the salary clears the $75,000 threshold, but the employee must get 14 calendar days to review the agreement and written advice to see a lawyer. Change the state to California and the non-compete disappears from the document, the non-solicitation clause narrows to trade-secret misuse, and the full text of § 2870 is added. Price the hire with the employee cost calculator before you send it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Official References
- FTC: Non-Compete Clause Rule
Status of the 2024 rule after Ryan LLC v. FTC, the dismissed appeal, and its removal from the CFR.
- California Business and Professions Code § 16600.5
Non-competes void regardless of where or when signed; employers may not enter into or enforce them.
- California Labor Code § 2870
Inventions an employee develops on their own time; § 2872 requires written notice.
- California Labor Code § 925
No out-of-state forum or choice of law for employees who primarily live and work in California.
- Montana Code Annotated § 39-2-910
Probationary period under the Wrongful Discharge from Employment Act.
- IRS Publication 463
Accountable plan requirements and the 60-day and 120-day fixed-date safe harbor.
- 18 U.S.C. § 1833(b): whistleblower immunity notice
The Defend Trade Secrets Act notice included in the confidentiality clause.
- 9 U.S.C. §§ 401-402: Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act
Employees may take sexual harassment and assault disputes to court despite an arbitration clause.
- 29 U.S.C. § 626(f): waivers under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act
21 or 45 days to consider a release and 7 days to revoke for employees 40 and older.
This template reflects federal and state rules checked in October 2026, including non-compete pay thresholds that change every year. It is general information, not legal advice, and it does not cover every state, city or industry rule. Have an employment attorney review the agreement before anyone signs it.