Human Resources Glossary - G

Garden Leave

When an employer requests that an employee not report to work after giving notice this is known as a "garden leave" request. This is because employees are instructed not to work during their notice period to prepare for their leave but are still on the payroll.

Garnishment

Garnishment also known as wage garnishment is when money is forcibly taken out of your salary and delivered to another person. This is typically done to settle past-due financial obligations such as unpaid taxes defaulted student loans alimony child support payments and other monetary punishments.

Generation X

The demographic that follows baby boomers and precedes millennials. Generally Gen X is typically defined as people who were born between 1965 and 1980

Generation Y

The generational group born between 1981 and 1996 is referred to as Generation Y often known as Gen Y or millennials. They are considered Gen Y since they were born after Generation X and Generation Z.

Generation Z

The generational cohort that follows millennials is Generation Z or Gen Z. According to most sources Generation Z was born between 1997 and 2010; hence as of 2020 its age range was generally between 10 and 23. A sizable fraction of Gen Z's oldest workers currently make up the workforce.

Glass Ceiling

The "glass ceiling" metaphor refers to the unseen barrier that keeps minorities and women from achieving executive and leadership roles in businesses. This expression which was first used to characterize restrictions placed on women in the workplace in the 1980s has subsequently been expanded to include racial and ethnic minorities who also face barriers to moving up the corporate ladder in terms of career progression.

Goleman Leadership Styles

Author and psychologist Daniel Goleman established the six basic leadership styles based on various facets of emotional intelligence as a result of his study. The leadership styles are coercive authoritative affiliative democratic pace-setting and coaching.

Good Standing

When a company entity is in good standing it has fulfilled all legal obligations including paying fees and filing papers with the U.S. state where it was founded. In addition the state grants the company a certificate of good standing as proof of this compliance. This certificate proves that the company is legitimately registered with the state and permitted to conduct business there. In some states a certificate of good standing is sometimes referred to as a status certificate or existence certificate.

Grievances at Work

An employee grievance is a workplace policy violation a breach of contract workplace bullying or any other issue significant enough to warrant filing a formal complaint. The grievance procedure at work typically starts with a complaints procedure (commonly through their employer or HR) to discuss injustice at work. Whether the business sees it that way or not they may think this to be an actual injustice.

Gross Amounts

In the context of a business gross amounts are the total quantity of something often income from a business or a person before any taxes deductions or charges.

Gross Income

Gross income is the total sum of money a company an individual or a contractor makes over a specific period. Although it is usually calculated over a year companies frequently publish their gross income every quarter.

Gross Misconduct

Any unethical and unprofessional activity on the part of an employee constitutes gross misconduct. Even if it is the first offense excessive misbehavior can lead to immediate removal from one's employment and damage one's relationship with their employer.

Gross Pay

Before any deductions are made the total amount received from the employer is referred to as "gross pay."

Gross vs. Net Income

A gross and net income comparison shows how much an employer pays an employee (gross) and how much the employee keeps after deductions (net). Most workers are reassured that they are being paid fairly for their labor by the figures and computations on their pay stubs that show this disparity each pay period.

Gross Wages

Gross wages are the sum of an employee's compensation before taxes and other withholdings. An employee's actual take-home pay (also known as "net earnings") may be much less than their gross compensation because gross wages are computed prior to deductions.

Gross-to-Net (GTN)

Through a procedure known as "gross-to-net" net pay is determined by deducting reductions and deductions from each employee's gross pay. The gross-to-net components specify the appropriate cuts and deductions.

Gross-Up

Gross-up is extra cash an employer gives a worker to cover any higher income taxes (Social Security Medicare etc.) that the worker would owe to the IRS after receiving a company-provided cash benefit such as moving costs. It's optional to employ gross-up typically done for one-time payments. It is occasionally utilized to reach a specified annual net pay though. When this occurs the salary is restated as net salary rather than gross salary.

Group Interview

In a typical group interview one hiring manager interviews several candidates or several hiring managers/stakeholders interview one candidate. A group interview is just a job interview with more people participating.

GROW Model

Sir John Whitmore Graham Alexander and Alan Fine were the co-creators of the GROW model which was developed in the 1980s. Managers executives and business titans use it as their primary coaching technique. 

The letters GROW stand for Goal Reality Options and Will. Each of these words represents the coaching process as a step. Managers frequently adopt the GROW framework to assist staff members with problem-solving goal-setting identifying and learning new skills and improving work performance.

Growth Mindset in the Workplace

A growth mindset believes everyone can learn new things and develop themselves regardless of natural talent. It applies to every employee from entry-level positions up to C-suite management positions. Employees with a growth mindset explicitly take lessons from their errors and apply them to future learning. A growth mentality can influence organizational culture and foster advancement across the board.