The point is there seems to be different rules governing people who come from different positions or social classes in our society.
That doesn't sound right at all. CEOs are more likely to be bound by noncompetes than line employees. Equally importantly, the noncompete of a CEO is much more likely to be enforceable. Contractual restrictions on competition probably become more onerous as economic status increases.
The best known example for this are bankers. As a rule of thumb, bankers don't go to jail.