The „right to disconnect“

As a recent study shows (published by French research group Eleas in October), more than a third of French workers use their devices everyday in order to work out-of-hours.

Despite the fact that checking professional emails after work gives employees a sort of autonomy and flexibility speaking of working outside the office mode, such a habit may also lead to the „info-obesity“ (according to a report submitted in September 2015 by labour minister Myriam El Khomri).

Computing and work-life balance expert Anna Cox (University of College London – UCL) says: “Some of the challenges that come with flexibility are managing those boundaries between work and home and being able to say ‘actually I am not working now’.

From 1st of January therefore, French companies should guarantee a „right to disconnect“ to their employees, which means that the new employment law has just entered into force. Since then, all the organisations that employ over 50 workers will be obliged to define employees „disconection from technology“ rights.

Its aim is to minimise an overuse of digital devices by employees after their working hours, which lately surged in unpaid overtime.

To diminish the problem, some steps have already been taken, among which there are an automatic erasure of emails for employees on holiday or email connections cutoff.

Eventhough no sanction for a breach of this obligation is foreseen, the company should publish a charter with employees out-of-hours demands and rights.