Garden Leave: What It Means and How to Use the Time Well
You resign. Your manager thanks you, then tells you that you will not need to come back in. You will stay on the payroll for your notice period, but you are to hand back your laptop, stay away from clients and wait.
That is garden leave.
The name suggests a relaxing few weeks pottering in the garden. In practice, it can feel strange. One day you are running a team. The next you are at home with no access to email and nobody to talk to about work.
Garden leave is common at manager and executive level, particularly when someone is moving to a competitor. Here is what it means, what you can and cannot do, and how to use the time well.
This is general information. Check your own contract and get legal advice if you are unsure about your obligations.
What garden leave is
Garden leave is a period, usually during your notice period, when you remain employed but are told not to work. You are paid as normal. You are still an employee, with the duties that come with that.
Employers usually use it to:
Keep you away from clients, staff and confidential information
Stop you taking information or relationships to a competitor
Manage a handover without you being in the business
Give the business time to tell clients and staff on its own terms
Can your employer put you on garden leave?
Usually only if your contract allows it. Most senior contracts include a clause that lets the employer direct you not to attend work during your notice period.
If your contract does not mention garden leave, the position is less clear. Check with an employment lawyer if this applies to you.
What you can and cannot do
Because you are still employed, your normal duties continue. That usually means:
You cannot start work for another employer. Even if your new role is ready, you will normally need to wait until your employment ends.
You must keep confidential information confidential. This continues during and after your employment.
You may need to be available. Some contracts require you to be contactable for handover questions.
You should not contact clients or staff about your move. This could breach your contract and, in some cases, a restraint clause.
You can usually prepare for your next role in general ways. Reading, study, rest and personal planning are fine. Check anything more specific.
If you are unsure about something, ask your employer in writing or get advice.
How garden leave fits with a restraint
This is the part many people miss.
If you have a restraint of trade clause, it may start after your employment ends, not when your garden leave starts. So a three-month garden leave followed by a six-month restraint could keep you out of a competing role for nine months.
Some contracts say the garden leave period counts towards the restraint. Many do not. Check yours. If you are negotiating a new contract, this is worth raising. If the combined period is long, get advice before you sign. For how long notice periods affect a search, see how to handle a long notice period.
How to use the time well
Garden leave can feel like being benched. It can also be one of the most useful periods of your career if you plan it.
Rest, properly
Many people go straight from one demanding role to another with no break. Garden leave gives you a rare chance to recover. Take a week or two to genuinely switch off. You will start your next role in better shape.
Prepare for your first 90 days
If you already have a new role, use the time to learn about the business. Read the annual report, look at its market and competitors, and think about what you want to achieve early on. You cannot start work, but you can think.
Your first 90 days often set how you are seen for years. See the first 90 days in a senior role.
Update your resume and LinkedIn
If you do not have a new role yet, garden leave is the best time to get your positioning right. You have time, your recent achievements are fresh and you are not juggling a full-time job.
Be careful with LinkedIn. Check what your employer expects about announcing your departure. Changing your headline to a competitor’s name while on garden leave can cause problems. For safer ways to update, see how to update LinkedIn without notifying your network.
Reconnect with your network
You can talk to people about your career in general terms. Coffee with former colleagues, mentors and recruiters can help you think about what is next. Just keep away from your current employer’s clients and confidential matters.
Build a skill
A short course, a qualification you have been putting off or simply reading in an area you want to grow. Use the time for something that adds to your value.
Think about what you actually want
If you are moving because you were unhappy, garden leave gives you space to reflect. What did you want more of? What do you never want again? Clarity now can shape better decisions later.
How to talk about garden leave
If you are job hunting during garden leave, you may be asked about it. It is a normal arrangement and needs no excuse.
“I resigned in August and my employer placed me on garden leave for my three-month notice period, which is standard for my role. I am available from November.”
That is all you need to say.
When garden leave is part of an exit
Sometimes garden leave is used when an employer has decided to end your employment, not just when you resign. You may be asked to stay away while the terms of your exit are worked out.
If this happens, get advice before you sign anything. The terms of your exit, including references and how your departure is announced, can matter a lot for your next role. See what to agree in an executive exit.
Mistakes to avoid
Starting a new role before your employment ends
Contacting clients or staff about your move
Taking documents or files with you
Announcing your new role on LinkedIn before agreed
Spending the whole period anxious and doing nothing
Assuming garden leave counts towards your restraint without checking
Garden leave and your notice period
Garden leave usually sits inside your notice period. If your notice period is one month, your garden leave can be up to one month. If it is six months, garden leave could run for six months.
Long notice periods are more common at senior level. They can be a real problem when you are trying to move, because a new employer may not want to wait. If you are negotiating a new contract, think about how long a notice period you are comfortable with, both for the employer and for yourself.
Some employers will agree to release you early from garden leave once the handover is done or once the commercial risk has passed. It is worth asking, politely, if you have a new role ready to start.
Is garden leave a bad sign?
Not usually. Many employers place anyone moving to a competitor on garden leave as a matter of course. It is a commercial decision, not a judgement about you.
Do not take it personally, and do not let it sour your relationship with your former employer. The way you leave matters. Your former manager may be a referee one day, or may cross your path in a small industry.
Staying connected without breaching your duties
It can feel isolating to be cut off from colleagues overnight. You can stay in touch with friends from work on a personal level. Just avoid talking about the business, your new role or anything confidential.
If former colleagues ask why you have gone quiet, a simple answer is enough. “I am on garden leave until the end of the month, so I am keeping out of work matters until then.”
Planning your weeks on garden leave
A simple plan stops the time drifting. For a three-month garden leave, it might look like this:
Weeks 1 and 2: rest, with no work planning at all
Weeks 3 to 6: positioning, resume, LinkedIn and conversations with your network
Weeks 7 to 10: deeper preparation for your new role, or a focused search if you do not yet have one
Weeks 11 to 13: final preparation and a short break before you start
Your next step
Check your employment contract for a garden leave clause and how it relates to any restraint. If you are already on garden leave, write a simple plan for the weeks ahead: rest, preparation, positioning and people.
If you are using the time to set up your next move, my career transition support covers your positioning, your search and your offer.
If you are not sure what your next move should be, book a complimentary Clarity Session. It is a good use of an hour while you have the time.
