We have all likely heard the media’s take on the new “Right to Disconnect” laws coming into effect this week (26 August 2024).
The “Right to Disconnect” will inform how employers and employees interact outside of working hours. The right does not prohibit employers from contacting their employees, nor does it prevent employees from contacting one another, including across time zones. Rather, the employee will be able to refuse to monitor, read or respond to contact, or attempted contact outside of working hours, when they are not expected to be working or paid to be working, so long as doing so is not unreasonable.
There are factors to help determine whether an employee’s refusal to monitor, read or respond to contact is unreasonable. The below non-exhaustive factors include:
- the reason for the contact or attempted contact
- the method of contact and level of disruption it causes the employee
- whether the employee is being compensated to remain available or perform additional work outside ordinary hours
- the nature of the employee’s role and the employee’s level of responsibility, and
- the employee’s personal circumstances (including family or caring responsibilities).
If you are unsure on these news laws – please contact the HRM Team and we can help you navigate these.
