Garden Leave
Garden leave is also referred to as Gardening Leave. The words are used interchangeably. For the longest time at the start of my career I thought it was only called Garden leave and would correct people that said Gardening Leave. I now know that both are quite acceptable. For this article I’ll call it Garden Leave because that’s what I’m personally used to calling it.
What is Garden Leave?
Garden leave is when an employer requires an employee who has resigned or whose employment is being terminated to stay away from the workplace and not perform their regular duties during their notice period. Instead, the employee remains employed by the company and continues to receive their salary and benefits, including pension contributions and healthcare coverage (if applicable) but will not do any work. They will be asked to return their laptop and company equipment as they are not required to perform any tasks.
The term "garden leave" is thought to have originated from the idea that employees on this type of leave can tend to their gardens or engage in other leisure activities during this period, rather than working for their current employer or moving immediately to a competitor.
Why Are People Put on Garden Leave?
To Protect Confidential / Sensitive Information: Garden leave is often used when an employee holds a position with access to sensitive company information or client relationships. By placing the employee on garden leave, the employer can mitigate the risk of the departing employee sharing valuable proprietary information with competitors.
Non-Compete Clauses: Employment contracts often include non-compete clauses that restrict employees from working for competitors or starting their own business in the same industry for a specific duration after leaving the company. Garden leave ensures compliance with these clauses as employees aren’t normally allowed to work for another employer during their notice period.
Conflict Resolution: In situations where an employee's departure is has an element of conflict, garden leave can provide a cooling-off period and prevent further disruptions in the workplace.
Garden leave isn’t detrimental to employees in any way as they continue to be employed during their notice period. I have personally put people on Garden Leave and have also been put on Garden leave myself. I know from experience that it can come as a shock to people. In an ideal world, if circumstances allow, it is a nice idea to talk about how they can say goodbye to people etc. You would normally give very little notice to someone that they are required to go on Garden Leave (so they don’t try to attempt to take any company information with them)
If you have any questions about Garden Leave head over to the Facebook group where there is a community who will be able to support you.