I used to work for a company who used them, for a pretty good reason, but:
1. they paid a BIG premium for the non-compete. Employees who were required to sign them got very, very large raises
2. they would pay a good portion of your salary for the duration of the non-compete period, if you left the company
That's how it's done. A company as profitable as Amazon shouldn't really have a problem with that.
I used to work for a company who used them, for a pretty good reason, but:
1. they paid a BIG premium for the non-compete. Employees who were required to sign them got very, very large raises
2. they would pay a good portion of your salary for the duration of the non-compete period, if you left the company
That's how it's done. A company as profitable as Amazon shouldn't really have a problem with that.