Garden leave
Plain-English definitions for England and Wales. General information, not legal advice. Laws and figures change - always check the current position on GOV.UK.
Garden leave Where an employee who is serving notice is told to stay away from work while remaining employed and paid. The contract continues, so duties of loyalty and confidentiality still apply, but the employee does not attend or carry out work. It is different from pay in lieu of notice, where employment ends immediately and the notice is paid out.
Also known as: gardening leave
Related terms
- Notice pay
- Pay for your notice period. There are statutory minimums - broadly one week after a month's service, rising to one week per full year up to a maximum of 12 weeks - and your contract may give more. Not paying proper notice can give rise to a wrongful dismissal or breach-of-contract claim.
- Wrongful dismissal
- A breach-of-contract claim, usually for dismissal without the notice (or notice pay) your contract or statute required. It is different from unfair dismissal: it is about the contractual notice, not the fairness of the dismissal, and it has no qualifying period.
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