Such as when "workers" (isn't that a Marxist word for them?) photocopy or phone-swipe reams of stats and trade secrets and bring them to a new company or venture for bonus compensation?
I always have found non-compete clauses an annoying idea to my personal self-interest. But so what? This decision is plainly unconstitutional over-reach. If you don't like that clause in the contract, your choice is to negotiate it away--or work somewhere else. There's no gun to your head.
There is a bit of a gun to people’s heads. When the entire industry demands them you end up with little to no choice. I never signed a non-compete that I couldn’t live with, and I did walk away from a few positions because of it. Sadly, they have become commonplace now when 30 years ago I only ran into a few.
The old case law had limits that had to be for a few years, 5 at most typically, and within a geographic location, although some companies were national or global. Now, companies want permanent bans and global. I’ve even seen some that stated not working for an entire industry like engineering. “Can’t be an engineer for anyone, anyplace, and forever.”