Embracing the Era of Disconnection

The "Right to Disconnect" has garnered significant attention since its introduction to parliament, but what does it really mean for workplaces?

Employers and unions have acknowledged the significant divide over the new ‘right to disconnect’ laws that came into effect on Monday. Employers have expressed concern about the lack of Fair Work Commission (FWC) guidance on what constitutes “reasonable” contact, warning of potential “conflict and disharmony.” In contrast, unions have praised the new provisions as a way to “reclaim the right to clock off.”

In essence, this new right allows employees to refuse to monitor, read, or respond to contact outside of their working hours, including from third parties like clients or customers. It's part of the broader “closing loopholes memorandum reforms” focused on employment law and took effect on August 26, 2024 (with a 12-month grace period for small businesses with fewer than 15 employees). The law doesn’t prohibit employers from contacting employees; rather, it empowers employees to decline such contact by choosing not to read or respond to messages and calls unless their refusal is deemed unreasonable.

Given the subjective nature of this law, how it will be implemented in practice may vary over time. Factors that could influence its application include:

• The purpose of the call or message.
• The level of disruption it might cause the employee.
• The nature and scope of the employee’s responsibilities.
• The employee’s personal circumstances.
• Considerations around compensation, role, and expectation of ‘reasonable additional hours.’
• Whether the role legitimately requires operational activities after work hours.
  

The right to disconnect will require careful management from HR, legal teams, and leadership. The boundaries remain somewhat unclear until real-life scenarios are tested, but the overarching goal is becoming clear: to reestablish the boundary between personal time and work time.

ACTU president Michele O’Neil celebrated the law, stating, “The right to disconnect is a cost-of-living win,”. “The average person does five to six hours of unpaid work every week. Thanks to this new law, Australians can now be paid for those hours of work.”

The right to disconnect applies to large employers starting this week and to small businesses (less than 15 employees) from August 26th next year.

Preparing for the right to disconnect

These changes have numerous implications for organisations and their employees. However, if leaders act now, they can ensure a smooth transition and potentially optimise the benefits these new reforms will bring. Leaders, managers and organisations can prepare for the right to disconnect by taking action on the following steps:

First, companies and individual managers should look at which employees they currently require to be on-call and be sure that their expectations of them are reasonable.

Consider, in the review, what industry awards, individual employment contracts, case law and the like may dictate whether on-call work can legitimately be required. Leaders need to be sure they understand what governs their employee-employer relationships and abide by the conditions laid out in these agreements.

Organisations should take a proactive approach in supporting their staff – especially managers – to adapt their working style to respect the right to disconnect, rather than waiting to hear complaints about people who have contravened it.

This can start with assessing, at a company level, how commonly employees are contacted out of hours and then assisting individual managers and employees to make the transition.

This can include things such as:

• Running training sessions on managing workflow
• Communicating company norms of only contacting employees within working hours
• Installing IT solutions, such as a ‘send later’ button on work email programs, and encouraging people to use them

Companies should begin thinking about how they can consistently uphold this new law as part of standard operating procedures, rather than addressing individual instances as they arise.

One of the most challenging things for individuals who are accustomed to being able to reach other people out-of-hours is to reprogram how they work.

This might involve remapping their work pattern to fit within traditional working hours.

Another alternative is to create new systems when it comes to sending emails or notifications. For example, night owls who want to capitalise on their energy at 10 pm could continue to do so - if they allow for the recipient to pick up the thread at 8:00 am rather than being expected to reply immediately.

How is the right to work from home being considered?

The right to work from home is also being considered as part of the Fair Work Commission’s review of modern awards.

The review assesses whether changes are required to increase flexibility for employees who are balancing work and care responsibilities.

Varying modern awards to include working-from-home rights would immediately affect more than 2.2 million employees, and potentially many millions more who are employed under enterprise agreements.

Optimising flexible work arrangements

While the idea of an enshrined right to work from home might cause concern among some leaders, resistance isn't the answer. Instead, organisations should seize the opportunity to reimagine remote work to enhance performance.

During the pandemic, companies were thrust into moving their entire workforces online with little time to establish proper processes or provide support. Many studies highlighting negative outcomes of remote work reflect the unique stress, disruption, and lack of preparation during the COVID lockdowns, rather than the true potential of working from home.

The introduction of a legislated right to work from home presents organisations with a chance to reconsider how they manage hybrid teams thoughtfully. Recent research indicates that remote work can be collaborative, creative, and productive when managed effectively. Organisations can reap the benefits of this new legislation by stepping up their game.

Proactive measures might include:

• Offering training on managing hybrid teams and remote employees

• Educating managers on performance monitoring and employee motivation without relying on outdated "command and control" approaches

• Developing clear work-from-home guidelines as part of the onboarding process

• Providing essential equipment, like monitors and keyboards, to help employees set up efficient home workstations

• Investing in systems and software that enhance the hybrid work experience, particularly those that support informal daily interactions

• Reevaluating workloads and reassigning tasks better suited to remote or hybrid teams
  

Regardless of the Fair Work Commission's review outcome, the demand for remote work isn't likely to disappear soon, and employer reluctance isn't backed by research. Leaders should view this as an opportunity to explore innovative working arrangements that benefit both employees and the organisation, offering flexibility while fostering engagement, well-being, and collaboration.

Coupled with the new right to disconnect, the potential right to work from home could empower forward-thinking organisations to reinvent modern work practices for the benefit of all.