Right to disconnect laws can boost retention 40 per cent, research finds ahead of new laws
Massive changes to workplace laws kick in August 26, but a long-running survey finds companies already giving staff the “right to disconnect” retain workers for longer.   :)


News.com.au
August 18, 2024

A long-running analysis of 24,000 workers has found the right to not be on call all hours of the day and night boosts productivity and retention, a study has found.

New federal “right to disconnect” laws will take effect on August 26, meaning staff are legally protected from being forced to take non-emergency calls and respond to emails outside of business hours.

Despite some business sector leaders feeling the changes will hurt productivity, a new survey indicates the effects of “right to disconnect” practices can boost staff retention by 40 per cent.

Business management platform Nimbus tracked 24,000 workers over the course of five years, finding businesses which implement the “do not disturb” ethos hold onto staff for longer.

Proponents of the changes say young workers are particularly vulnerable to the stress and burnout caused by employer overreach.

“Far from being a drag on productivity, these new (right to disconnect) laws could help improve it, if organisations accept that they must now collaborate with their staff and provide them with the tools to improve their work life balance,” Nimbus chief executive Grant Custance said.

“Getting the right people with the right skills more motivated, because they know where they stand with their working hours, is a good thing.”

A worker’s caring responsibilities will be considered when determining if their refusal to reply outside business hours is reasonable.

Mr Custance founded Open Wave in 1998, which four years later was the software being used to schedule staff in 80 per cent of Australia’s call centres. The business was purchased in 2011, and in 2015 he founded the company which would go on to become Nimbus.

Telstra uses Nimbus’ technology for call forwarding during natural disasters, and worldwide security giant Serco uses Nimbus globally.

The Nimbus app is installed on workers’ phones, and they can set a “do no disturb” window of time.


Some business groups say the right to disconnect will harm productivity.

Nimbus tracked 24,000 workers at “some of Australia’s most iconic retailers” across five years. The companies at which staff used the do not disturb feature, on average retained staff at a 40 per cent higher rate.

Former Fair Work Ombudsman executive director, Michael Clark, said many organisations had “yet to get the message” that the employee-employer relationship had shifted.

“The time where a 6am message or call from the boss to come into work today is over,” Mr Clark said.   :)

The changes don’t ban an employer or manager sending an after-hours email, message or making a call.

“Right to disconnect has killed this archaic practice and puts the power of when messages are received into the hands of the employee.”

From August 26, employees of large companies can refuse to monitor, read or respond to contact or attempted contact from their employer, or another person if the contact is work-related unless the employee’s refusal is unreasonable.

Not answering the phone will be unreasonable if the contact is required by law.

Nimbus chief executive Grant Custance says the right to disconnect improves productivity.

If the call or email is not required to be answered by law, reasonableness will be judged by the worker’s job responsibility level, how disruptive the contact was and whether they were compensated.

The Fair Work Commission is the port of call for an employee or employer to take a complaint.

Companies which breach the rules, including an individual employee, can be liable to civil fines up to $19,800.   :)

The changes do not prohibit an employer actually sending the email or message outside work hours.

The new laws will apply to businesses with less than 15 staff as of August 26, 2025.

So this is a federal law that only effects federal employees?

I speculate the lack of reply means I'm correct?

It's fantastic for the majority of Canberra workers but does nothing for the the majority of the nation.

Good old Albo, don't worry about cost of living or the homeless desperation.

Let's ensure our loyal voter base - federal public servants.

Aren't trouble outside work on there six figure salary.

Pfft.  Goodbye Albo

Bosses could face huge fines for disobeying new ‘disconnect’ laws   :)
New ‘right to disconnect’ laws that come into force from today have been slammed by some business leaders, here’s why they’re worried.


News.com.au
August 26, 2024

Bosses have slammed new right to disconnect laws that come into force today warning workers could weaponise the changes and employers could face big fines.

The new laws, that apply to businesses with more than 15 people, deliver a new right for more junior employees to refuse contact, or to refuse to monitor their emails, if it’s outside of their working hours.

Rather than being a prohibition on an employer contacting or attempting to contact an employee however, the changes will allow workers to refuse that contact.

But the bad news for bosses is that they could have big fines of up to $18,000 as the maximum penalty for ignoring the new rules.

Speaking on the Today show, Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry CEO Andrew McKellar said the changes were not necessary and likely to cause more problems than they solve.

Andrew McKellar said the changes were not necessary.

“Look, I think it’s a big day, a nervous day for business,’’ he said.

“I think there is a lot of uncertainty out there about what these changes will mean.

“This is a solution looking for a problem, I mean, really there really was no rationale for this, and a lot of it should be just common sense.

“So our concern is, what we’ll see is in a number of cases, this will be used when the employment relationship is broken down. It’ll be another reason why there are claims or why there’s litigation.”


Unions have fought for years over the right to disconnect laws complaining the rise of mobile phones and email means work is encroaching into time off.

“What that basically means is your employer can’t harass you after work,” Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) secretary Sally McManus said.

Sally McManus Secretary of the Australian Council of Trade Unions, backs the move.

“So emails, calls … if they contact you, it’s got to be reasonable, and you’ve got a right not to respond.

“Not all employers, but some employers have completely blurred or just crossed over those boundaries and are expecting people to be connected and answer their emails and look at their phones, 24/7,” she added.

But Liberal frontbencher Jane Hume criticised the government’s “right to disconnect” legislation insisting that new laws allowing workers to ignore calls and texts from bosses out of work hours are “unreasonable”.

“Adding more rights for workers for something that is just part of a normal working relationship is unreasonable, particularly for small businesses here, who just need to go and get the job done,” she said.

Workplace Relations Minister Murray Watt naturally backed the government’s changes, insisting the impact would depend on seniority.

The move is said to help bring back work-life balance.

“What this is really about is trying to bring back a bit more work-life balance into people’s lives,” Watt told Sky News this morning.

“What we’re asking people to do is just have a bit of respect for people’s private life and recognise that they’re not being paid after-hours to take those calls.”


The Greens leader Adam Bandt is a big supporter of the changes insisting that nobody should remain on call to work 24-7.   :)

“For too long, the boundaries between work and life have been blurred, continuous connection to work has been normalised and the pressure to be available at all hours of the day and night has been building for working people across the country,” Mr Bandt, said.

“With the proliferation of smartphones and advances in technology, work emails are only a notification away and a phone call from your boss can interrupt a night out with friends or family. Workers are often expected to be on call 24/7 to answer emails, take calls and be available to their employers at a moment’s notice. The Senate work and care committee described this phenomenon as ‘availability creep’.”