Author: Raghuvansh Bhutani is a 2nd-year law student at Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law, Patiala.
The right to disconnect allows employees to disengage from work-related communications outside working hours without repercussions. This article examines its relevance in India, drawing insights from Australia’s legal framework, where employees can refuse employer contact after hours under reasonable conditions. India’s toxic overwork culture, highlighted by excessive working hours and recent overwork-related deaths, underscores the need for such protections. Drawing from global best practices, the article proposes clear communication protocols, dispute resolution mechanisms, and awareness programs to balance employee well-being and business efficiency. Implementing this right in India could enhance productivity, mental health, and work-life balance while boosting economic efficiency.
Introduction
The “right to disconnect” has become a pressing issue in labour rights discussions, driven by the increasing demands of a constantly connected work environment. In a society where being constantly connected through smart digital devices is common, an ‘always on’ workplace culture is becoming increasingly prevalent, and workers can feel that they are required to provide instant responses to communications from managers, colleagues or customers, whether or not their superiors explicitly request this.
The concept of “right to disconnect” concept emphasizes the importance of allowing employees to disengage from work- related communications during off-hours without fear of unwarranted consequences. In India, the push for such legislation has gained momentum, particularly following the recent tragic death of an Ernst & Young (EY) employee linked to overwork. This incident has spotlighted the detrimental effects of excessive work expectations on employees’ mental and physical health.
Various organizations like ILO have also reiterated the need for effective measures to establish clear demarcation of paid work from personal life as enshrined in its international labour standards, and The Universal Declaration of Human Rights has also stood for workmen’s right to rest and leisure.
In this article, we will take a look at what is the need for such provisions in India and how they can be effectively implemented to benefit both the workmen and the enterprises.
Overview of Australian Legislature
Firstly, we need to take a look at the Australian legislature to understand how it works.
As per the Australian Fairwork Ombudsman, the right to disconnect refers to the right of the eligible employees to refuse employer or third-party contact outside of working hours in some circumstances. The right to disconnect is defined as a worker’s right to be able to disengage from work and refrain from responding to work-related electronic communications, such as emails, calls or other messages, during non-working hours.
Here are the key takeaway points from the Australian framework:
- The framework has set down criterias as to which employees are eligible to exercise this right. It includes employees that come under the ambit of the Australian National Workmen Relations system and currently include employees of non-small business employers and workers of the gig economy and various other sectors that fulfil the employer-employee test.
- The eligible employees have the right to refuse to monitor, read or respond to contact (or attempted contact) outside their working hours from an employer or any third party.
- This refusal would be subject to the test of reasonableness, that is, the employee has a right to refuse provided the refusal is not unreasonable. What is reasonable is determined by various factors like the nature of contact, employees’ role in the business and so on.
- Employers can still contact their employees in cases of emergencies or if the nature of the job requires irregular working hours such as in the case of essential services.
- Awards, enterprise agreements and other registered agreements can include the right to disconnect provisions provided they do not restrict the right and those terms are fairer than the right in the Fair Work Act.
- Disputes that arise with regards to this are encouraged to be tackled internally first. If that fails, the employer or employee can approach the Fair Work Commission to resolve the dispute.
Right to disconnect has continued to be incorporated into the labour provisions of multiple countries ever since its inception in the French legislature in 2017 with Australia being the latest addition to the list of these countries.
What is the need for it in India?
Various Indian labour laws provisions and international organisations have asserted a 48 hours work week as the accepted standard for the maximum number of working hours in a week, however as per ILO reports, 51% of Indian employees work for more than 49 hours a week, which is the second highest in the global market as per the available statistics. According to a survey, 88% of Indian employees are contacted by their employers outside of work hours, and 85% say this continues even during sick leave or public holidays.
Instances such as the recent death of an Ernst & Young (EY) employee allegedly due to overwork stress have brought into the limelight the toxic and stressful work culture of India in various sectors.
Various prominent business role models such as the entrepreneur Narayana Murthy who called on Indians to work 70 works a week further exacerbate the extent of this overwork culture where employee health and wellness is side-lined in favour of the enterprises’ interests.
This rampant overwork culture has significantly affected the health and well-being of various Indians with international organisations like WHO and ILO regularly asserting that long working hours have increased the number of deaths from heart diseases and stroke. Another worrisome trend as per NCRB is the number of suicides due to career/professional problems has been on the rise with overwork stress being a major contributor to the same.
Communication after work hours directly contributes to this overwork culture and stands counterintuitive to the principle enshrined in Article 24 of the International Declaration of Human Rights that advocates for the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation on working hours.
Hence, it is imperative to take measures to safeguard employee rights.
How can it be implemented in the Indian context to promote economic growth and employee welfare?
The right to disconnect is often perceived as more suitable for developed and first-world countries. However, this policy has also been implemented in several developing nations such as Ukraine, Brazil, and Chile, to varying extents. The implementation depends on the specific needs, nature of work, and economy of each country. An appropriate model should be implemented for the creation and enforcement of right-to-disconnect laws that address the specific requirements of the Indian workforce. Some suggestion taking inspiration from the Australian legislature are given below:
Firstly, Provisions relating to the right to disconnect should initially be assessed and agreed upon at the employer-employee level, with a clear discussion on the terms of permissible contact and the establishment of a “communication corridor”—specific times during which contact is to be avoided, except in cases of emergency. It is essential that both parties define what constitutes an emergency to prevent the misuse of this exception, where urgency alone is improperly used to justify contact outside the agreed-upon hours. Additionally, an efficient work management system must be established at the company level to ensure that tasks are balanced, shared, and communicated effectively among employees covering each other’s shifts.
Secondly, an internal resolution mechanism should be established at the company level to address disputes concerning these provisions before moving on to a regulatory board established for the same. Dispute redressal can be taken up by a regulatory board established under the state labour department in order to ensure prompt and efficient disposal of such claims alongwith reserving resources for more concerning matters.
Thirdly, hard and soft approaches to the implementation should be assessed and incorporated where employers and employees are made aware of the right to disconnect with encouragement to avoid out of working hours contact (soft approaches) alongwith provisions of automatic withholding of emails and calls received during out of contact hours until working hours continue (hard approaches).
Fourthly, there are certain situations that can be deemed reasonable enough to be left out of the ambit of this right and may include additional hours performed in the context of contractually agreed overtime, which is paid and can attract an overtime premium and additional hours that may or may not be compensated and are not agreed but are performed usually because a worker is unable to complete their work during their contractual working hours or because they are contacted out of hours. Ensuring that such situations are respected and that any additional hours performed outside contractual hours (including agreed contractual overtime) are compensated either financially or through time off are left out the ambit of such right due to its reasonable nature.
A 2014 Stanford University study found that working more than 50 hours a week doesn’t necessarily lead to more productivity. In fact, after 50 hours, productivity starts to level off, and by 60 hours, it even declines. Additionally, the study highlighted that employees who deal with work-related calls and emails after 9 PM tend to have poor sleep quality, which further harms their productivity. Hence, right-to-disconnect provisions ultimately contribute towards improving employee productivity and hence directly benefitting the enterprise as well.
A 2023 study has indicated that there is a (statistically significant) link between the presence of a right-to-disconnect policy at the company level and improved work-life balance, better health outcomes and greater workplace satisfaction.
Conclusion
In the context of an increasingly digitalized workplace, where employees often face significant pressure to remain perpetually accessible at the discretion of their employers, the right to disconnect serves as a critical mechanism for alleviating the undue burden placed on workers. This right balances the interests of both employees and employers, ensuring that while employees are protected from excessive intrusion outside their working hours, employers retain the ability to make necessary contact in exceptional circumstances. Moreover, it is important to emphasize that the right to disconnect forms part of a broader labour law reform alongwith improving workplace culture and better implementation of present labour laws and hence aim to safeguard workers’ rights and ensuring a fair and equitable working environment.
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