The Senate may soon be taking on noncompete agreements, after a rare bipartisan bill to declare them illegal in most instances was introduced and has gained support.

What it means: The Workforce Mobility Act would ban the use of noncompete agreements except in connection with the dissolution of a partnership or the sale of a business.

Seven states have already passed restrictions or banned the agreements in most cases.

Why it matters: Previously a rare clause, companies have recently been instituting noncompete agreements into the contracts of "janitors, receptionists, customer service workers, fledgling journalists, even employees of a day care center," according to analysis from the Economic Policy Institute.

A 2015 study found that 40% of Americans have had a noncompete agreement at some point in their careers.

The big picture: "Workers’ inability to leave their jobs because of non-compete agreements and similar limitations has also contributed to the wage stagnation of recent decades," legal experts Jane Flanagan and Terri Gerstein write for EPI's Working Economics blog.

"Two studies released just last month found that non-compete agreements adversely affected wages and job mobility."

"Non-compete agreements aren’t really about trade secrets anymore. They’re about limiting workers’ bargaining power."

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