moonlighters

[BP.]

Client said she heard of an H&R employee who'll do taxes "on the side" for peanuts. Is H&R cool with their employees moonlighting as tax preparers?

[KBTS]

No they are not cool with it. I believe H&R requires employees to sign a contract which contains a non-compete clause for one year after leaving the company. Whether they actually enforce the contract is another matter.

[taxea]

moonlighters

I worked a season with Block over 10 years ago. At that time they included in their employee contract a non-compete clause which covered two years for both employee and ex-employee.
My position has always been that this is unenforceable, employee or not, unless the preparer is soliciting current Block clients.
I can't fathom that Block has a claim to any taxpayer being a "potential client" or that a client who chooses not to return to Block would qualify as putting the preparer in violation of the contract.
When I left Block, if a former "Block" client located and called me, I would make it clear that the move must be their decision and option.
I have never heard of Block going after a violation of this clause in the contract. I don't believe they would have any standing in a court of law and that this clause is more an idle "threat" that encourages the employee to bring all contacts to Block.
taxea

[jainen]

Most businesses

Most businesses would fire an employee who openly competed against them in the evenings. There's nothing wrong with Block expecting an ordinary amount of loyalty. I don't see why the preparer would bother. If independently successful, he or she would quit Block anyway. If not successful, why jeopardize the regular paycheck?

[Snaggletooth]

Peanuts?

I cannot accept this behavior as being a major problem - for Block or anyone else - if the preparer is working for "peanuts." Most of them (except the managers and longevity people) are already working for minimum wage or thereabouts and receive a bonus at the end of the tax season based on number of returns.

Block provides its employees with all the marketing, software, banking connections, and a facility. If any of their people go out on their own, they will have to provide all of this and will not be able to do all this and work for "peanuts." If Block is worried about this, they will worry about some sharp employee being able to invest in resources and set up a valid practice and charging enough fee to cover this -- they won't be worried about some guy working past midnight for "peanuts." Very much akin to killing a fly with a shotgun.

[Bees Knees]

Non-competes are generally not enforcable unless the person is paid something for the non-compete.

[BP.]

scam?

I was thinking along the lines of the risk of a phishing type of scam, where tax prep fee seems to good to be true, and TP hands over all the personal data, which is then resold. Especially when someone goes against their company policy, enforceable or not. Smacks of dishonesty & maybe a touch of desperation to me.

[oceanlovin'ea]

Non-compete

In Lakeland, Florida a few years ago (when I was a Block employee) there was an employee that left the company after 1 or 2 years, went down the street and opened an office preparing income taxes.

Block went after him and successfully got a percentage of his income for the year.

There was another preparer that they went after also.

Maybe some places wouldn't bother, but this franchise (which is no longer here) went after any one they could.

Linda F