Garden Leave Explained

Garden leave (sometimes called gardening leave) is a practice where an employee who has resigned or been dismissed is required to remain at home — or at least away from the workplace — for the duration of their notice period. During this time, the employee:

• Remains employed by the employer
• Continues to receive their full contractual salary and benefits
• Is bound by all contractual duties — including confidentiality, fidelity, and any express garden leave or restrictive clauses
• Cannot work for another employer or start a competing business without the employer's consent

The practical effect is to keep the employee away from clients, confidential information, and the workplace during a sensitive transition period — protecting the employer's business interests while fulfilling the contractual notice obligation.

An employer can only lawfully place you on garden leave if your contract of employment contains an express garden leave clause authorising them to do so. Without such a clause, an employee could argue they have a right to work during the notice period — in some cases (particularly where remuneration depends on performance or where skills might deteriorate) courts have upheld this right.

If your contract does contain a garden leave clause, the employer can typically place you on garden leave simply by notifying you in writing that they are exercising their right to do so. You do not need to consent.

During garden leave, the employer must continue to pay your full salary and provide all contractual benefits. They cannot simply stop paying you while you are on garden leave — this would be an unlawful deduction from wages and a breach of contract.

Garden leave interacts closely with post-termination restrictive covenants. Restrictive covenants (non-competition, non-solicitation, and similar clauses) usually run from the date employment ends, not from the date of resignation. Garden leave effectively extends the period before you can join a competitor — a six-month garden leave followed by a six-month non-compete covenant means you cannot work for a competitor for up to 12 months after handing in your notice.

Courts will sometimes reduce the period of an enforceable restrictive covenant to account for a period of garden leave if both together appear unreasonably long. This is why employers must carefully balance garden leave and restrictive covenant periods.

If your employer tries to enforce an excessively long combined period, you may be able to challenge the restrictive covenants on grounds of unreasonableness. Seek legal advice — this is a complex area where the courts assess enforceability on the specific facts.