Under German law, an employer can only suspend an employee in certain cases. One of the core obligations of the employment relationship is an obligation on the employer to provide the employee with relevant work to be performed. If it fails to do so without justification, it must nevertheless continue to pay the employee. Notwithstanding

Your employee resigns to join your arch rival. You’re not worried because you know you have ‘water tight’ post-employment restraints in the contract of employment. But, if in reacting to the employee’s untimely resignation, you breach the contract and this breach amounts to a repudiation of the contract, then your restraints will be unenforceable. This is why it is very important to ensure your actions, including placing an employee on ‘garden leave’ or taking their mobile phone, are consistent with your rights under the contract.

The recent case of Grace Worldwide (Australia) Pty Limited v Steve Alves [2017] NSWSC 1296 is an example of where the employer got it right.