It was a Wednesday night. I remember because it was the same night we experienced a loss in my family. I’d finished my early morning shift (at a previous workplace) and spent the evening with my parents, before heading home and preparing for the next day of work. It was then – about 12am – that I received a call from my boss.

And another… and another… and another.

A major incident had unfolded, and they needed my support. Despite the fact I would be logging on to work in a mere few hours, and I’d just had a pretty tough night personally, I answered.

According to a 2022 report by the Centre for Future Work, many would do the same. Their survey revealed that 71% of workers had performed work outside of their scheduled hours, often due to employer expectations. While my case may be more out of the ordinary, I don’t know anyone who wouldn’t admit to checking their emails or taking a cheeky work call after hours.

The right to disconnect

That’s where the right to disconnect comes in. In effect, the new legislation will give employees in Australia the right to ignore unreasonable work communications during their unpaid personal time. It doesn’t prevent employers from contacting their teams outside regular hours, but it means an employee can’t be punished for not responding to the call.

The move has been met with mixed reviews – so, let’s take a look at some of the positive and questionable aspects of the right to disconnect.

The pros

1. It’s about time!

First, it’s important to acknowledge that the right to disconnect isn’t actually new. France first adopted similar regulations in 2017, and several countries have followed suit – Ireland, Canada and the Philippines, to name a few. In other cases, some employers chose to bypass a nation-wide law kicking in – BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen all prevent out-of-hours calls and emails.

The concept isn’t even fresh in Australia – for example, the Victoria Police Force included the right to disconnect in its bargaining agreement in 2021. Staying up to date with these global trends only helps us adapt to a rapidly changing world and positions us for success in the future.

2. Wellbeing takes the front seat

Work-life balance is more than just a catchphrase in job ads - when people and organisations strike the right balance, it has a positive impact on everyone involved. If people are able to log off - and properly switch off - they’re actually more likely to perform better when they come back to work. Plus, you know, people are more than just employees - so treating them well isn’t just good business. It’s also the right thing to do.

3. Attitudes won’t change without action

Do you think people took Matthew McConaughey seriously as an actor before his transformation in the 2010s? Absolutely not! They didn’t call it the McConaissance for nothing – and the same goes for every shift in modern societal attitudes. If nothing else, the right to disconnect could serve as a catalyst for greater appreciation of work-life balance, and further action toward prioritising mental health and wellbeing in the workplace. These conversations have to start somewhere.

The questions

1. What does ‘unreasonable’ actually mean?

I’s not 100 percent clear. We know several factors will be considered when determining whether an employee’s refusal is unreasonable, but how this plays out in each individual context is still up in the air. With time and experience, this will likely become clearer, but there could be some uncomfortable interactions in the meantime.

Take the two examples given on the Fair Work Commission’s site. In one instance, it seems unreasonable to contact someone who needs to pick their children up from daycare, but in the next example, the person isn’t exempt because she’s going to the gym and running errands. There are also other factors, such as seniority, pay, the time the task would take, and other available resources. But this begs a few questions. How much extra pay would you need before you log on after hours? Would you log on for an hour? What about three hours? Are we deeming some outside-of-work tasks “reasonable” to interrupt and not others? Where do we draw that line? And that leads us to the next question…

2. You can’t be punished for not responding. But can you be rewarded for answering?

Here’s where it can get a bit blurry. Let’s say you have two employees – one who takes full advantage of the legislation (rightly so!) and one who will respond at the drop of a hat. Who will you go to first? Who gets more opportunities to be visible and recognised?

In a perfect world, we’d only take into account how an employee performs and behaves at work – but there’s some people who still believe Nickelback sucks, so it’s clear we’re far from a utopia.* Instead, we can only hope employers won’t choose to only reward those who are constantly available at the expense of those who set healthy boundaries.

3. Will this solve the burn-out problem?

On its own? No, probably not. It’s not designed as a get-balance-quick scheme, and we still have a way to go before work works for everyone. While it may protect some, there are probably still employers out there who will take advantage of uncertainty and argue their case to continue contacting people whenever it’s advantageous to them. In that sense, this is just one small step to correcting a societal problem around hustle culture and productivity as a measure of self-worth.

So, where does that leave us?

Whether you support the right to disconnect or not, one has to admit striking the balance between work and home is crucial. There are still some details to iron out, but as the law comes into effect and we start seeing the short- and long-term impact, its practicality will become clear.

In the meantime, employers could take a proactive approach. What do your current flexible working arrangements look like? Are you fostering a supportive, healthy workplace for your employees?

We think there’s no better way of examining your talent offer by asking the people who know your organisation best – your people. Our employee value proposition (EVP) process is designed to amplify the voice of your people by articulating what matters most to them. If you need a hand, we’d love to chat to you about the impact an authentic EVP can make.

* For social status reasons, this is a joke. Gen Z, please don’t disown me.