Many states have passed legislation that prohibits employers from requiring their employees to enter into agreements that contain confidentiality provisions that would prevent those employees from disclosing sexual harassment, sexual assault or other similar improper conduct occurring in the workplace.
Texas employers: Effective September 1, 2025, Texas joined those states by passing Senate Bill 835, available here: 89(R) SB 835 – Enrolled version, which provides that it is “void and unenforceable” to enter into any agreement with an employee containing a confidentiality restriction “to the extent the provision prohibits a person, including a party, from disclosing an act of sexual abuse or facts related to an act of sexual abuse to any other person.”
Employers in Texas should review their covenants, settlement, release and other similar agreements to ensure that they comply with this new legislation.