How to get Gardening Leave

Thurrock

Hi,

I hope someone can advise me on the Issue of Gardening Leave.

I am about to hand my notice in to my company to join its main rival. My Role is Customer facing and although not part of a sales team I am responsible for signing up our customers to outsource area's of there business to us.

My new role is very similar and the information I have at my current employer would help me develop in my new role in terms of what we charge and expiry dates of specific contracts.

I would like to take Gardening leave when i hand my notice in however, I am not sure if i should state this in my letter of resignation or have a conversation afterwards.

Any help or guidance would me appreciated.

Many thanks

KiKi

AFAIK, you don't opt for Gardening Leave - it's something required of you by the company so that they can prevent that sort of information being leaked.

What does your contract say? Gardening Leave is usually reserved for very senior, specialist and technical roles. For more junior roles, your contract will often say that you cannot sign up to a rival organisation within a certain time-frame or area.

I'm sure you would like to take Gardening Leave (being paid to do nothing is very nice), but it's something your company will stipulate to protect themselves, not something you ask to do. After all, if employees can ask for it, then the company either doesn't need it, or they're not worried about what you know, or they've already written a clause in your contract - *you* might think it's of concern, but the company doesn't necessarily take the same view. That's my experience of it, anyway.

What does your contract say?
KiKi

anamenottaken

Is your job offer from the rival company unconditional? If it is, I would expect they have a reference from your current employer who will therefore be aware of your interest in moving to the rival company.

If it is unconditonal and therefore handing in your notice is a safe thing to do, just mention which company you are moving to in your letter of resignation.

ILW

You could find yourself in very deep doo doo if your start giving confidential inforemation to your new employer.

Thurrock

Hi - My Contract has no mention of Gardening Leave. However i Joined 8 years ago when we had a Monopoly on what we do. Now its a market which is open to rivals.

I work at a management level and by joining a rival it is going to make my remaining months very uncomftable from senior management and although its not that common that they give anyone Gardening Leave I am the first person to go to a rival.

I suppose what Im asking is, If i point out the risks of me staying and finding information my company would not like there competitor to see they are more likely to grant me gardening leave but would this be seen as very unprofessional?

Thurrock

ILW wrote: »

You could find yourself in very deep doo doo if your start giving confidential inforemation to your new employer.

Yes I am aware of that and In the industry I am it would be very unwise of me to do so. However my company do not know this so thats where I am coming from.

Thanks

somethingcorporate

I'd not mention it. It's your employers choice, if you suggest it you would sound like a chump.

Bigmoney2

Does the company have a policy on working for rivals. My employer usually escorts people off site if they give notice and are going to a competitor, not strictly termed garden leave, they just don't want them to have access to anything which could benefit the new employer, however most will have aquired any info they need before handing in notice.

Mistral001

As far as I can see, it is not up to you to decide. Tell the company you work that you have been offered this other job and who has offered it and that you plan to take up the offer. The company will then decide what to do with you. They should know what is in their best interest. If gardening leave is in their best interests, you might get offered it. It is up to them to decide.

InsideInsurance

Why do you want garden leave?

Surely if you want anything you want to receive cash in lieu of notice and therefore you get the same amount of money but can choose when you start your new role as your contract has ended immediately.

With garden leave you are still working for your current employers they are just choosing not to make you come into the office or do any actual work but at any point they can reverse that and make you restart your job. You are not free to take on other work until the end of your garden leave.

The middle option of cause is negotiating a shorter notice period which reduced the amount of monies you get but frees you to go to the new role quicker.


You are simply not going to get number 1. If you really want number 2 then make a big thing about the fact it is a direct competitor (but also expect your movements and any switching customers to be looked at very closely) but the norm would be to go for 3

Gordon_Hose

Gardening Leave is at the discretion of your current employer. You're not entitled to it and I wouldn't go asking tbh.