Right to Disconnect

In our hyperconnected world, the line between work and personal life has become extremely blurred.  Checking work emails and answering phone calls outside of ordinary work hours has become the new ‘norm’ for most employees.  With that being said, employees may struggle to ‘disconnect’ from their work-life.

Establishing clear boundaries to incorporate a healthy work-life balance is imperative for increasing employee productivity and job satisfaction whilst ensuring employee wellbeing by reducing the risk of burnout.  The Australian Government has introduced new workplace laws as part of its ‘Closing Loopholes’ changes.  New legislation introduced will provide employees with more rights to disconnect outside of work.

What is the right to disconnect?

The new “right to disconnect”, outlined in recent provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth), grants employees a right to refuse to monitor, read or respond to contact from an employer or a third party outside of their ordinary working hours, unless the refusal is unreasonable.

Whether the refusal is considered to be unreasonable is dependent on various considerations.  These factors stipulate as follows:

• The reason for the contact or attempted contact;

• How the contact or attempted contact is made and level of disruption the contact or attempted contact causes the employee;

• The extent to which an employee’s remuneration compensates them to remain available to perform work;

• The nature of the employee’s role and responsibility and;

• Their personal circumstances

 Proposed timeline

For non-small business employers, these changes are intended to roll out on 26 August 2024.  However, for small business employers, the anticipated changes are intended to roll out a year later on 26 August 2025.

The Fair Wok Commission will insert a “right to disconnect” term into all modern awards by 26 August 2024.  The Commission will also provide written guidelines about how the “right to disconnect” will operate.

Be sure to keep an eye out for any updates from HR Business Assist for the upcoming modern award specific changes that may be relevant to your employees and impact how your business operates.

What should employers do now?

In the coming months, employers may wish to consider the following actions to safeguard themselves:

• Review and implement workplace policies regarding work availability and electronic communications;

• Review employment contracts;

• Provide training and information to managers to ensure they are aware of the changes and;

• Provide training and information to employees regarding their new right

If you feel uncertain about these changes or wish to gain further information, please contact the team at HR Business Assist on 1300 138 551  or info@hrbusinessassist.com.au.