With the advent of digital and communication technology, an average worker can work directly from their smartphone. According to the report released by the World Economic Forum, the proportion of mobile workers who could work from any location, is expected to rise beyond 70%. While this has benefits in terms of work flexibility, it also carries with it a significant risk of erosion of boundaries between professional and personal life. Studies have found that if an employee is expected to be available round the clock, they tend to exhibit risks of overwork like sleep deprivation, developing stress and being emotionally exhausted. This persistent urge to respond to calls and emails (termed as ‘telepressure’), constant checking of emails throughout the day, and even on weekends and holidays, is reported to have destroyed the work-life balance of employees. According to a study, the constant monitoring of work-related messages and emails, would overtax employees’ brains leading to a condition called ‘info-obesity’. This condition is characterised by stress, burnouts and sleeplessness.
Studies show that when employees are overburdened with work, either their productivity stays constant or even reduces with increase in work hours. A 2014 study conducted by the University of Stanford found that the output and productivity of employees plateaued off after 50 work hours per week. In fact, workers’ productivity declined when they were overburdened with 60 work hours per week. Research depicts that employees who respond to work-related calls and mails after 9 pm, had the worst quality of sleep which consequently had a bearing on their productivity.
The Right to Disconnect Bill respects the personal space of the employees by recognising their right to disconnect and not respond to their employer’s calls, emails etc., during out-of-work hours. While the Bill recognises the rights of the employees, it also takes into consideration the competitive needs of the companies and their diverse work cultures. The Bill provides for flexibility in the right to disconnect rules and leaves it to the individual companies to negotiate terms of service with their employees. The digital transformation has a direct impact on conditions in the employment contract, like the time and the place of work. Hence if an employee agrees to works during out-of-work hours, the Bill entitles them to overtime pay at the same rate as their wage rate. This provision aims to check the surge in unpaid overtime work, brought about by digital transformation.
The Bill has provisions in case of lack of consensus between employer and employee during negotiations. In such cases, the company is required to explicitly lay out their out-of-work demands from their employees, in the Charter, and the employees can either choose to work or enforce their right to disconnect. The Bill also mandates the companies to draft their own policy towards employees working remotely, teleworking and travelling for work. The Bill provides for constitution of Employees’ Welfare Committees at every company to assist the employees in negotiations with employers. The Bill also has provision to ensure that these negotiations are held frequently at regular intervals, to keep in line with the dynamic business demands.
The Bill imposes sanctions @ 1% of its total employees’ remuneration, on entities (companies or societies), for any non compliance with the provisions of the Bill. To rein in the adverse effects of hyperconnectivity on employees’ personal life, the Bill also provides for counselling services to increase awareness among employees and citizens, on reasonable use of digital and communication tools, for professional and personal use. To free an employee from digital distractions and enable him to truly connect with the people around him, the Bill provides for digital detox centres.
The Bill thus champions for the rights and welfare of employees, by mandating individual entities to negotiate out-of-hour service conditions with their employees, and upholding the right of employee to disconnect. The Bill thus recognises right to disconnect as a way to reduce stress and ease tension between an employees personal and professional life.