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

Oregon 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 Oregon make instructors sign a non-compete?

Under ORS 653.295, a noncompete is void unless all of these are true:

• The employee is salaried and exempt.
• The employer has a protectable interest, such as trade secrets or confidential business information.
• Pay at termination exceeds the indexed threshold, $119,541 for 2026.
• The employee got written notice at least two weeks before starting, or signed upon a bona fide advancement.

The maximum term is 12 months, and a signed copy must be given within 30 days after termination. An employer may enforce against a lower-paid employee only by agreeing in writing to pay 50% of salary (or of the threshold, if greater) during the restricted period. Ordinary instructors are almost never covered.

Can you stop a departing instructor from soliciting your students?

Nonsolicitation agreements are excluded from the statutory definition of a noncompete in ORS 653.295, so the salary threshold does not apply. Reasonable student/customer non-solicits are judged under common-law reasonableness.

Can you stop a departing instructor from recruiting your staff?

Agreements not to solicit or recruit employees are also excluded from ORS 653.295 and are generally enforceable if reasonable.

What is the minimum wage for instructors in Oregon?

Three regional rates are in effect from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027, and they adjust each July 1 for inflation:

• Portland metro (inside the urban growth boundary): $16.80
• Standard: $15.55
• Nonurban counties: $14.55

When do instructors earn overtime?

Time-and-a-half after 40 hours a week. Daily overtime applies only to certain industries, such as manufacturing, and not to fitness or martial arts schools. Oregon’s exempt-salary test is tied to the regional minimum wage times 2,080 hours, but that is below the federal $684/week, so the federal threshold controls.

When is the final paycheck due?

Under ORS 652.140, final pay is due:

• Fired or mutual agreement: by the end of the first business day after termination.
• Quits with at least 48 hours’ notice: on the last day.
• Quits without notice: within 5 business days or by the next regular payday, whichever comes first.

Penalty wages apply for late payment, and earned commissions are wages.

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

Oregon’s ban-the-box law (ORS 659A.360) covers private employers. You may not ask about criminal convictions on the application or before the initial interview, or before a conditional offer if there is no interview. Oregon also limits credit checks (ORS 659A.320) and bans asking about salary history (ORS 652.220). No general fingerprint mandate applies to private martial arts schools, but you can run a background check after the interview stage and check the sex-offender registry.

Are martial arts instructors mandated reporters of child abuse?

Oregon’s mandatory-reporter law (ORS 419B.005) covers paid coaches, assistant coaches and trainers of child athletes. It also covers employees of public or private organizations that provide child-related services or activities, such as youth groups and camps. Paid martial arts instructors who teach children are very likely mandatory reporters. Report to the Oregon Child Abuse Hotline (1-855-503-SAFE / 7233) or law enforcement.

What can a dress code or grooming policy require?

Oregon’s CROWN Act (2021) defines race to include hair texture and protective hairstyles such as braids, locs and twists. ORS 659A.030 covers sexual orientation and gender identity. Oregon law (ORS 659A.033) requires reasonable accommodation of religious clothing and grooming. Dress codes must be applied neutrally.

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

Oregon protects lawful off-duty tobacco use (ORS 659A.315), but recreational cannabis use is not protected. Oregon bars employers from disciplining workers who decline to attend meetings about religious or political matters (captive-audience law).

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

Oregon’s pay equity law bans asking about salary history and requires equal pay for comparable work, but there is no statewide pay-range posting requirement. Wage discussion is protected under state law as well as the NLRA.

What privacy rules apply to student and parent records?

The Oregon Consumer Privacy Act applies to businesses that control or process data of 100,000+ Oregon consumers, or 25,000+ with 25% of revenue from data sales. Most single schools fall below this. A 2025 amendment bans selling precise geolocation data and the data of consumers under 16, effective 2026.

Other Oregon rules that catch school owners

Oregon sick time accrues at 1 hour per 30 worked, up to 40 hours a year. It is paid at employers with 10+ employees (6+ with a Portland location) and unpaid below that. Paid Leave Oregon payroll contributions also apply, with employer contributions required at 25+ employees. Adults get a 10-minute paid rest break per 4 hours and a 30-minute meal period for shifts of 6+ hours. Employers of 14-17 year olds need an annual minor employment certificate from BOLI.

What to watch in Oregon

The noncompete salary threshold is re-indexed each January. SB 951 (2025) limits noncompetes for health-care practitioners only. Watch BOLI’s annual July 1 minimum wage announcement.

The bottom line for Oregon schools

Leave a post-employment non-compete out of ordinary instructor agreements; for that role it is unlikely to be enforceable. Where Oregon 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

• Oregon BOLI – Noncompetition Agreements
• Oregon BOLI – Minimum Wage
• Oregon BOLI – Minimum Wage Rate Summary
• Child Welfare Information Gateway – Mandatory Reporting: Oregon
• Fisher Phillips – Oregon Noncompete Law Changing Again

Also for Oregon: Martial arts laws in Oregon · Oregon 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.