Garden leave
Also known as: gardening leave
Garden leave is a notice-period arrangement where an employee is paid in full, kept on the payroll, but barred from coming to the office, accessing systems, or working for anyone else. Used to keep departing employees away from clients, sensitive data, and competitors during their notice window.
Garden leave originated in UK employment practice and is now common across the EU, Australia, and Hong Kong. The mechanic is simple: an employee gives or receives notice, the company invokes a garden-leave clause from the contract, and the person stays on payroll without coming to work. The point is to keep institutional knowledge and client relationships from walking out the door early. It's an expensive defensive move — you pay for non-work — but in roles where a single sales rep's two-month head start with a competitor can cost millions, the math works.
When companies use garden leave
- Senior sales reps who are moving to a direct competitor
- Engineers or researchers with access to current roadmaps, M&A activity, or unreleased products
- Executives whose departure announcement would move customer confidence
- Anyone with active access to material non-public information
- Cases where summary dismissal isn't justified but the trust has broken down
How long it typically lasts
Same as the contractual notice period — typically 1 month for individual contributors, 3 months for senior roles, 6 months for executives. Some UK financial-services contracts run up to 12 months. The employee receives full salary, bonuses they're entitled to, and continued benefits during the period.
Legal requirements
- Must be explicitly stated in the employment contract — can't be invoked retroactively
- Full pay + benefits continue throughout the period
- Employee remains bound by confidentiality, IP, and non-compete clauses
- Vacation typically accrues; some contracts deduct accrued vacation from the period
- Different from suspension (which is for misconduct investigation) and from termination (which ends pay)
Frequently asked questions
- Is garden leave the same as suspension?
- No. Suspension is usually a step in a misconduct investigation and may be unpaid (depending on jurisdiction). Garden leave is fully paid and unrelated to misconduct — it's a defensive measure during a notice period.
- Can someone work elsewhere during garden leave?
- No. They're still employed by you and bound by exclusive-service + non-compete clauses. Taking another job during garden leave is grounds for terminating the leave and pursuing damages.
- How long is garden leave typically?
- It matches the notice period. 1 month for ICs, 3 months for senior staff, 6 months for executives is the typical range. UK financial-services contracts can extend to 12 months.
- Do bonuses pay out during garden leave?
- Yes — any bonuses contractually owed (pro-rated guarantees, accrued commissions, etc.) continue to pay. Discretionary bonuses dependent on continued performance usually don't.