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Sinclair Employees Say Their Contracts Make It Too Expensive to Quit

Noncompetes, forced arbitration and a liquidated damages clause can equal 40 percent of annual salary.
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Trump Calls Sinclair `Superior' to CNN as Merger Awaits U.S. Nod

After Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc. drew widespread criticism for having anchors read a statement taking aim at the integrity of other U.S. media outlets, many wondered why some of the company’s journalists didn’t just quit.

The short answer is the cost may be too steep. According to copies of two employment contracts reviewed by Bloomberg, some Sinclair employees were subject to a liquidated damages clause for leaving before the term of their agreement was up: one that requires they pay as much as 40 percent of their annual compensation to the company.