Bugged By Non-Competes: FTC Calls The Exterminator On Rollins, Inc.

When the FTC formally rescinded its Non-Compete Clause Rule last fall, we warned that the Rule’s demise could paradoxically raise enforcement risk.¹ The current FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson promised a wave of “warning letters” to businesses urging them to consider abandoning non-compete agreements “as the Commission prepares investigations and enforcement actions.”² Now, the FTC is taking action.

On April 15, 2026, the FTC ordered Rollins, Inc., one of the largest pest-control companies in the United States to stop enforcing non-compete agreements against more than 18,000 employees nationwide. Rollins is the parent company of well-known brands including Orkin, HomeTeam, and Critter Control.³ The agency simultaneously sent warning letters to 13 other companies in the pest-control industry, urging them to review their employment agreements for non-compete provisions which the FTC believes could unfairly limit competition.⁴