In 2024, Pye-Barker sent both me and my current employer’s attorney a demand letter stating that I was in violation of my non-solicit agreement with Pye-Barker and that they would seek legal remedies from both me and my current employer if we did not meet the demands of the letter. This demand letter was sent to me on November 22nd (the Friday before Thanksgiving) and I had until close of business on November 27th to retain legal counsel and respond to their demand letter. It should come as no surprise to anyone that 3 business days (and before Thanksgiving holiday no less) was not an adequate amount of time. I lost my job from my current employer on December 2nd (4 business days after receiving the demand letter) and it has been a struggle ever since. I could not pull unemployment through December due to the classification of my termination (employer claimed I violated my non-solicit with Pye-Barker based on the demand letter and terminated for cause) nor could I find a decent job due to it being so close to the holidays. I could not recover from the loss of two jobs in such quick succession, so my debt mounted as gig work proved inadequate to cover my bills.

I started bankruptcy proceedings in January. I have managed to keep my head above water since then, but it has been an uphill battle. The most recent loss was the withdrawal of a job offer from another company in the fire safety industry who did not wish to become a potential target of Pye-Barker’s litigation and has informed me that they will consider hiring me only after my non-solicit with Pye-Barker has expired. I wish to also note that while non-competes are illegal in my state of North Carolina, the aggressiveness with which Pye-Barker accuses individuals of violating non-solicits is so absurd that larger companies in the industry have been conditioned not to consider hiring past Pye-Barker employees so as to avoid being targeted in this way.

I am making this post to cover the legal fees I will incur as I pursue damages resulting from Pye-Barker’s demand letter. Both accusations in the demand letter are exaggerated, and the alleged origins of said accusations were fabrications. I believe the claims Pye-Barker has made came from an individual third party who had a financial interest in seeing me terminated from my employer in November, and I believe I have enough evidence to conclusively prove this. I also have enough evidence to prove another claim within the demand letter to be untrue as well as that Pye-Barker did no investigation of said claims before producing and distributing this letter. I have tried to walk away from this mess, but it still lingers over my head as a cloud of oppression, preventing me from furthering my career. I have spoken with attorneys since this incident took place; after months of evidence collection, I have found a defamation attorney who, upon careful review, has agreed to take my case. I wish I could take out a loan for these attorney fees, but the damage to my credit incurred in the fallout of this smear campaign has made such funding a non-option at this time. In accordance with North Carolina statute, I have one year to file a suit for defamation; that clock started ticking six months ago. In conducting research on my own behalf, in the lead-up to this action, I discovered at least dozens of other folks who have recently found themselves in nightmarish situations similar to my own, many of whom I hope will see this plea, and do so sympathetically.

Maybe you are someone who feels that leaving to work for a competitor to your current employer, or even starting your own venture altogether, may lead to this type of shameless retribution, that you are trapped under the thumb of your current employer. Maybe you aspire to work in this industry or have a loved one who already does. If you find yourself sympathetic to my situation for any reason and want to help me seek justice, I would be eternally grateful for even the most modest contribution. Thank you.