If you've ever heard from your employer during non-working hours, you may have been tempted to ignore the message. Starting next week, employees in Australia will be totally within their rights to do just that.
It's called “the right to disconnect” — a movement that's growing across much of the world, but not so much in the Asia Pacific.
France was the first country to adopt a national law guaranteeing that right back in 2017.
The practice spread across much of Western Europe, from Portugal and Spain to Greece.
It's the law in Brazil, which also mandates 30 days of vacation every year. Italy, Argentina and some other countries restrict the "right to disconnect" to those who work from home.
In Germany, it's not a right protected by law, but it's general practice within private industry. That's at least in part because the companies believe it helps productivity.
And back in Australia, that's also part of the thinking.
News Corp Australia reported that the business management group Nimbus tested the theory by tracking 24,000 workers over five years.
It found that, compared to peer groups, companies that let workers post a “do not disturb” sign on their phones during off-hours retained staff at a 40% higher rate.
