New right to disconnect laws: What you need to know

Significant changes are on the way for Australian businesses.

On Monday 26 August 2024, new ‘right to disconnect’ laws came into effect which means employees now have a right to ignore contact from their organisation after work. The thinking is that it will create better boundaries between employers and employees. 

The right to disconnect protects employees who ignore, refuse to monitor, or acknowledge any contact from your organisation outside of their paid working hours, unless the refusal is unreasonable. 

So why has this come about, and why can’t organisations and employees apply the common sense approach without the government intervening? 

Plenty of employees would say yes. Technology has made communication between employers and employees more casual. Also, flexible work has meant employers contact employees whenever they please, making it hard to switch off. 

A combination of these factors has blurred the line between work and home life. Some employees think employers are entitled to believe they should beckon to every call and request. On the flip side, some employers think it’s ridiculous that employees need a legal right to disconnect from work and should be able to switch off without legislation.

While the jury is still out, as an HR manager, you should prioritise working with the relevant stakeholders like legal, management, and your employees to ensure that you are on top of the new laws and have a roadmap. 

Need to know

The laws don’t apply to small businesses just yet. If your organisation has fifteen or fewer employees, these laws will only affect your organisation from 26 August 2025. 

These laws are not a blanket ban on your organisation contacting an employee out of hours, like if there’s an emergency or a need for shifts. However, your organisation must legally respect an employee's right to live a life beyond work. Essentially, as an employer and HR manager, you need to ensure managers think carefully before contacting an employee outside of work hours.

Okay, so what if an employee refuses to accept your contact?

Reasonable test 

When you’re trying to work out whether an employee’s refusal is ‘reasonable’, start with these questions:

• Reason for your contact: If you didn’t receive a response, did it affect your team or business operations? Did the matter genuinely need immediate attention, or could it have waited until the next working day?
• Is the contact disruptive? Was the employee away on holiday? Did you call late? If so, could you send them an instant message on Slack or Teams, which is less intrusive than a direct phone call?
• Role and responsibility: Does their role justify the out of hours contact? Consider if they’re in a senior role with critical responsibilities.
• Personal circumstances: Do they have young kids? Are they going through a stressful period at home? You don’t want the contact to interfere with their family or caregiving duties if they're a primary caregiver. 

What are organisations saying?

HR managers and organisations have some mixed feelings about the right to disconnect. 

Some think that it will crush productivity. The concern is that it will slow things down if employees aren’t contactable outside of work. Realistically, both employees and organisations should adopt a common sense approach. If there’s a time-sensitive project or deal on foot, it’s important to make the communication expectations clear. 

There’s something to be said about a reset, and perhaps setting clear boundaries might enhance productivity as employees can recharge. 

Some people think that lawyers will be the real winners, as the right to disconnect will become a large basis for litigation. 

Flexible work and flexible contact are different. If employees work late, that doesn’t necessarily mean they can be contacted during all hours of the night, unless of course, the contact is during paid working hours. Again, the legislation aims to protect employees who work regular hours.

Both employees and employers are hopeful that the right to disconnect will help reduce burnout and give them a better chance to recharge.

What’s next?

Consult with legal: Organise a meeting and ask legal to review and update employment contracts and implement relevant policies and procedures required by the legislation. This should be a priority as your current flexible policies might need to be changed. Prepare documentation and get ready to educate managers if needed.

Engage with management: Assess how the right to disconnect will impact teams. Reasonable contact will vary, so managers know what measures to take to avoid contacting staff outside ordinary working hours. Ask managers to send a group message to employees about their preferred contact methods. 

Talk with employees: Regular and open communication prevents workplace problems. Both employees and managers are responsible for open and effective communication. Encourage employees to discuss out of hours contact and set expectations that suit them. Also, suggest that they set expectations when they can be contacted outside of working hours.

Monitor and review: Arrangements are temporary and should be reviewed regularly or when there’s a change in an employee’s hours, such as a change to hours or work due to a flexible work arrangement.