Richard <snip>
<Richard said> > You brought up Red Hat; I know of some cases where Red Hat employees have > attempted on their own to get device vendors or software distributors to > provide source code in compliance with the GPL. They were not typically doing > that as personal copyright holders, and they were not typically acting as > agents > (even agents on spec, if you will) of Red Hat. So, taking your question > again: no, > Red Hat employment agreements do not prohibit that sort of activity. I'd be > really surprised to see an employment agreement address such a thing. > This is interesting - I've never seen such a restriction either. I do see other problematic clauses in employment contracts, though. I frequently advise employers that their employment agreements should explicitly state that they are not intended, and shall not be construed so as to conflict with the rights that an employee has in their own right under free and open source licences, particularly GPL. For example, a restriction on dealing with the employer's IP may be construed as a GPL 'further restriction' if it impinges on code that the employer otherwise distributes under the GPL. This is a particular problem post termination. Incidentally, these unintended further restrictions can appear in other areas as well, such as post-deal lockout clauses in corporate M&A transactions. - Andrew
