jambushoytan: Russian technology firms agree to avoid poaching each other, keep salaries in check

American companies that reach no-poaching agreements do so behind closed doors, as it's considered illegal and anti-competitive. No such reservations appear to exist in Russia, as several of the country's top technology giants have openly admitted to reaching an unprecedented verbal deal: Acronis, Epam, Kaspersky Labs, Parallels and Yandex have all promised not to actively recruit each other's staff. They contend to CNews that it's a way to prevent salaries from getting out of control as staff are lured away, and that fear isn't entirely without justification -- there's a well-known salary war between Facebook and Google in Silicon Valley, for example, that makes it tough for smaller companies to attract the same talent. Whether or not the pact stands may be another matter. There's no history of Russian court action versus anti-poaching deals, but concern exists that the truce may not be strictly above-board.

[Image credit: Jennifer Boyer, Flickr]

Filed under: Internet, Software