CHICAGO- Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan is suing the Jimmy John's sandwich chain accusing it of improperly forcing low-level employees to sign agreements preventing them from seeking jobs with competitors.
Madigan announced the lawsuit against Champaign-based Jimmy John's in a news release Wednesday. She called the noncompete agreements unfair.
A phone message left with Jimmy John's corporate offices by The Associated Press was not returned.
The agreements prevent employees from working for any business located within 3 miles of a Jimmy John's that derives at least 10 percent of its revenue from submarine or deli sandwiches.
A later version of the agreements changed the restriction to 2 miles. Madigan says Jimmy John's initially said it stopped using noncompete agreements in 2015 but later said the policy change was never implemented.
