“I quit!” and “you can’t work for a competitor”: getting exits right

Two scenes.

A manager loses his temper in a meeting and says “I resign.” By evening he regrets it. The company says it has accepted.

A sales lead resigns properly, serves her notice and takes a job with a competitor. Her old employer writes to say her contract bars her from working in the industry for two years.

Both are exit problems. Both are cheaper to prevent than to fight.

When “I quit” is final

Under Nigerian law, a resignation takes effect once it is given. An employer cannot refuse to accept it, and the employee cannot take it back unless the employer agrees. No special form is needed, so a spoken resignation can count unless the contract requires it in writing.

That surprises people on both sides. An employee who resigned in anger cannot insist on coming back. An employer who wants to keep a valuable person who said something rash can treat the change of heart as a new offer and accept it.

Two limits matter:

• Notice still applies. The contract sets the notice period. For “workers” under the Labour Act, broadly manual and clerical staff, the Act sets minimums: from one day for someone employed up to three months, to one month for someone employed over five years. Leaving without proper notice can cost the employee their terminal benefits, or a payment in lieu of notice.

• Pushed is not the same as quit. If an employer makes work unbearable to force someone out, the National Industrial Court can treat the resignation as a dismissal. Lawyers call this constructive dismissal, and compensation can follow.

Why most non-competes fail

Nigerian courts start from the position that people must be free to earn a living. A clause that stops someone working after they leave is enforced only if it is reasonable. It must protect a real business interest, such as trade secrets or customer relationships, and go no further in time, place and scope than that interest needs.

In practice, the National Industrial Court has struck down clause after clause: a one-year ban covering all of Nigeria where the employer could not show it operated nationwide; a five-year ban on a former chief operating officer working in a related field; a three-year ban in a restaurant business.

July 2026 added a sharper edge. In MTN Nigeria Communications Limited v. Theodore Nwabueze Ikpa, the Court of Appeal reportedly upheld a National Industrial Court finding that the restrictive clause in a former employee’s contract was unreasonable and had unfairly limited his ability to find new work. The trial court had awarded him about ₦5.1 million in compensation. The lesson is new and important: an overbroad clause may not just fail in court. It may cost you money.

Our view

Blanket non-competes are mostly a bluff. They frighten employees who do not know their rights, and they protect very little in court. Employers get more real protection, with less risk, from four tools:

1. A tight confidentiality clause, backed by actually marking and controlling confidential information.

2. A non-solicitation clause covering named customers or colleagues for a short period.

3. Proper notice periods for senior staff, long enough for a real handover.

4. Paid garden leave for the most sensitive roles. The employee stays employed and paid, but away from the business, until what they know goes stale.

If a post-employment restriction is truly needed, keep it narrow, short and specific to the role, and be ready to show why it is needed.

What to do now

Employers

• Review your contract templates. Replace blanket non-competes with confidentiality, non-solicitation and garden leave.

• Write down how resignations are handled: in writing, acknowledged, and with a short cooling-off conversation when a resignation comes in the heat of the moment.

• Keep records of performance and grievances. If a resignation is later called constructive dismissal, those records are your defence.

Employees

• Do not resign in anger. If you have decided to go, put it in writing, state your last day and serve your notice.

• Read your restrictive clauses before you accept a new job. Many are unenforceable, but take advice before you assume yours is.

• If you were pushed out, keep the emails and messages. They are your evidence.