Applying for a not-so-competitor (employee, jobs, companies, fired)

[ZenMaster2008]

I work for a utility and I'm considering applying for a different Utility based on location of the other utility company. I'd really like to live where utility 2 is located (it's same state and same general area a few hours away). The problem is that my company communicates with the other company regularly and I'm not sure what the etiquette here is. Would company 2 keep quiet or are they going to go "oh hey we had X employee apply for a job with us!"

Both are pretty big companies so I doubt my name would even come up but you never know and I don't want to risk anything in this market.

[MrRational]

in the absence of a "no compete" contract (not likely) or inconsistencies in your personal data it's the same thing as with any two businesses in the same basic industry: it depends.

you can ask that they not contact anyone there unless (or until) they are ready to send you farther up the food chain and most people will honor that.

[Hemlock140]

Private or publicly owned? Public employees are not likely to be fired or in any way mistreated for looking around, in fact, my public agency has a policy allowing a substantial raise to help keep a good employee with an offer elsewhere.

Private companies, on the other hand, are more likely to be critical and cause you problems for your lack of loyalty.

When I was in utilities in the Bay Area once you got to lower management
people pretty much always knew who was going for jobs anywhere else. Lower level staff no one really cared.