Employment in Israel is (if there's no union involved) mostly at-will as well, even if not quite as at-will as the US. However, it is my understanding that e.g

Employment in Israel is (if there's no union involved) mostly at-will as well, even if not quite as at-will as the US. However, it is my understanding that e.g. California is similar. It's not that asking someone to sign a non-compete clause is illegal; what is illegal is not properly compensating them for it. That is, a clause like "in the event of lawful termination of employment by either side, for a period of up to (at the employer's discretion) 12 months, you will continue to receive your salary and will not be allowed to compete with employer". Such a clause is legal in Israel, and indeed it is how binding non-competes are implemented. I haven't had employees in California in almost 20 years now, but AFAIK it is similar there. It is probably worded differently because of how the non-compete laws on the books are written, but I've heard of cases where something to that effect was deemed legal and enforceable.