New Hampshire Employment Law for Martial Arts Schools: Non-Competes, Pay and Hiring Rules

New Hampshire allows employee non-competes only for workers who clear statutory pay or job-status tests, so most ordinary instructors cannot be bound.

Can a martial arts school in New Hampshire make instructors sign a non-compete?

RSA 275:70-a voids any non-compete with a low-wage employee, defined as someone earning an hourly rate at or below 200% of the federal minimum wage — $14.50 per hour in 2026. RSA 275:70 also requires you to give a copy of any non-compete or ‘non-piracy’ agreement to an applicant before or with the job offer (or offer of a change in job classification); one sprung after the offer is void. For workers above the threshold, courts apply a common-law reasonableness test. Many part-time assistant instructors earn under $14.50 and cannot be bound at all.

Can you stop a departing instructor from soliciting your students?

Student non-solicitation (‘non-piracy’) clauses are subject to the same advance-disclosure rule in RSA 275:70 and are judged for reasonableness. Not confirmed whether the low-wage ban in RSA 275:70-a reaches pure non-solicits, since it defines non-competes as limits on working for another employer — check with local counsel.

Can you stop a departing instructor from recruiting your staff?

No specific statute; courts apply a reasonableness test. Practitioners advise giving these with the offer letter too, since RSA 275:70 is read broadly. Not confirmed — check with local counsel.

What is the minimum wage for instructors in New Hampshire?

$7.25 per hour; New Hampshire’s minimum is tied to the federal rate (RSA 279:21), and no increase is scheduled for 2027. No local minimums.

When do instructors earn overtime?

Time-and-a-half after 40 hours in a workweek; no daily overtime and no state exempt salary threshold higher than federal.

When is the final paycheck due?

If you fire an employee, all wages are due within 72 hours (RSA 275:44). If the employee quits, wages are due by the next regular payday, or within 72 hours if the employee gave at least one pay period’s notice. Earned commissions — Not confirmed — check with local counsel.

What background checks can you run on instructors who teach children?

No confirmed statewide ban-the-box law for private employers, so the criminal-history question may generally be asked; follow federal FCRA and EEOC guidance. Annulled records may lawfully be answered as if they did not exist. No state law confirmed requiring fingerprint checks for private martial arts programs; the NH sex offender registry is public. Salary-history ban — Not confirmed — check with local counsel.

Are martial arts instructors mandated reporters of child abuse?

Yes. New Hampshire is a universal-reporting state: any person with reason to suspect child abuse or neglect must report (RSA 169-C:29). Report immediately to the Division for Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) Central Intake or to police in an emergency.

What can a dress code or grooming policy require?

RSA 275:37-e, effective September 1, 2024, bars workplace discrimination based on hair texture and protective hairstyles associated with race or ethnicity. The NH Law Against Discrimination (RSA 354-A) protects religion, sexual orientation and gender identity (since 2018); dress codes must accommodate these.

How far can a morals or conduct clause reach into off-duty life?

New Hampshire protects off-duty tobacco use (RSA 275:37-a) but has no broad lawful off-duty conduct law. Recreational cannabis is not legal in NH, so off-duty cannabis use is not protected. Morals clauses are generally allowed.

Do you have to disclose pay or allow staff to discuss it?

No pay-range posting requirement. State law protects employees who discuss or disclose their wages. Not confirmed — check with local counsel for the exact citation.

What privacy rules apply to student and parent records?

The New Hampshire Privacy Act took effect January 1, 2025, but applies only to businesses handling data of at least 35,000 NH consumers (or 10,000 if they get more than 25% of revenue from selling data), so typical schools are below the threshold.

Other New Hampshire rules that catch school owners

No state paid sick leave mandate. A 2026 law (SB 402, Chapter 55, effective July 7, 2026) voids geographic non-competes for physician associates — not relevant to instructors, but a sign of legislative interest.

What to watch in New Hampshire

HB 1188 (2026), which would have limited non-competes to workers earning over five times the federal minimum wage and capped them at one year, was reported ‘inexpedient to legislate’ by committee and appears dead; expect it to come back. Any federal minimum wage change automatically changes NH’s rate.

The bottom line for New Hampshire schools

Leave a post-employment non-compete out of ordinary instructor agreements; for that role it is unlikely to be enforceable. Where New Hampshire law allows it, a narrow student non-solicitation clause limited to students the employee actually taught, a confidentiality agreement, and real control of the student database protect a school far better.

Sources

• NH RSA 275:70-a Noncompete Agreements for Low-Wage Employees Prohibited
• WilmerHale: New Hampshire Enacts New Law That Could Invalidate Non-Competition and Other Restrictive Covenants (RSA 275:70)
• SB402 (2026) Detail
• HB1188 (2026) Detail
• Jackson Lewis: New Hampshire Prohibits Workplace Discrimination Based on Hairstyles
• McLane Middleton: The Basics of NH Law on Restrictive Covenants

Also for New Hampshire: Martial arts laws in New Hampshire · New Hampshire membership contracts

What every martial arts school staff package should contain

• Offer or employment agreement: the legal employer, the role and duties, workplace, pay, employment status and termination terms, reviewed against local rules. U.S. at-will language does not belong in a Canadian contract.
• Compensation schedule: hourly or salary terms, commissions and bonuses, and exactly when each is earned and paid. Record all working time, not only time on the mat. See instructor pay structures and overtime.
• Appearance and conduct policies: functional uniform, hygiene and safety standards with a written accommodation process. See the dress code and grooming guide.
• Child-protection policy: boundaries, private communications, transport, supervision and reporting. See the conduct clause guide and background checks for instructors.
• Confidentiality and data-security agreement: student records, CRM access, permitted use, return and deletion, and protected-disclosure exceptions (in the U.S., the federal DTSA whistleblower-immunity notice). See student data and trade secrets.
• Restrictive-covenant addendum: only what local law permits, usually a narrow student or staff non-solicitation clause; a non-compete only in exceptional cases. See non-compete laws by state and non-solicitation agreements.

Planning for a departure? Read When an instructor leaves: protecting students and records. Every state and province is indexed in the Martial Arts Employment Law Center.

Before you act on this

This article provides general information and is not legal advice. Employment, wage, human-rights, privacy and restrictive-covenant laws change, and their application depends on the exact wording of an agreement, the employee’s duties and pay, where the work is done and when the agreement was signed. Confirm the current statute, regulations and agency guidance, and take advice from a lawyer admitted in the relevant state or province, before drafting, changing or enforcing an employment agreement. Corrections: see our editorial policy.