A Complete Guide to Garden Leave in Singapore for Employers & Employees

A Complete Guide to Garden Leave in Singapore for Employers & Employees When your employee resigns or is asked to leave, you want to ensure that their transition goes as smoothly as possible — but you also want to protect your confidential information and client relationships at the same time. One practical way to do this without ending up in unnecessary disputes is through a garden leave arrangement. That’s why it’s important for your leave management software to include garden leave as a selectable, policy-aligned leave type. What is ‘garden leave’? Garden leave (also known as gardening leave) refers to the period after an employee resigns or is given notice of termination, during which they stay employed but are told not to report to work. Even though your employee does not come to the office or perform day-to-day duties anymore, they remain on your company’s payroll, so they still receive their full salary and all contractual benefits. During this time, they are restricted from accessing internal systems or data and contacting your clients. They also cannot join competing firms. This arrangement helps you reduce competitive risk, especially when the employee is moving to a rival company or has access to sensitive business data. It gives your business time to protect key accounts and internal information, as well as prepare for a smooth handover. Is garden leave a valid type of leave? Yes. Garden leave is recognised in Singapore, but only when used under clearly defined conditions. Although the Singapore Employment Act does not directly define garden leave, the Ministry of Manpower accepts it as long as the employment contract clearly states the terms and as long as the arrangement is reasonable.

Because employees remain employed during this period, you must continue paying their full salary and providing contractual benefits. If bonuses or other incentives are contractually guaranteed, those must also be honoured. Your leave management software should be set up to reflect garden leave entitlements correctly.

What are the rules for implementing garden leave? To implement garden leave correctly, you must include a clear clause in the employment contract. You can’t require an employee to go on garden leave without this. The contract should spell out both the employer’s and employee’s rights and obligations during the leave period, including salary, benefits, and any restrictions. Managing garden leave is simpler with Adaptive Pay. This leave management system is part of a full cloud-based HRMS that will help oversee your HR’s most critical areas, from attendance to payroll and claims. If you want to see how it works, you can request a demo on their website.