Australia’s New Laws Grant Employees the Right to Disconnect

On 26 August 2024, Australia became the latest country to push out new laws that grant employees the “Right to Disconnect”. Under the new laws, employees can refuse contact, or attempted contact, from their employer or a third party outside of working hours, unless the refusal is deemed unreasonable.

Following France, Belgium, Portugal, Spain, Ireland, and Italy, Australia is now the 7th country in the world to take a significant stride to set boundaries between employees’ personal lives and work, safeguarding their physical and mental well-being, and work-life balance.

Wonder what was classified as reasonable/unreasonable refusals? Are you excited to know how this could impact your work-life balance? This article by Pacific Prime aims to discuss the newly implemented “Right to Disconnect” and how it will transform the work-life balance of many employees.

What is the “Right to Disconnect”?

According to the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO), the “Right to Disconnect” enables employees to refuse to monitor or respond to contact and attempted contact outside their working hours, unless their refusal is unreasonable. It applies to any work-related contacts, employers and co-workers included.

The new set of laws is not supposed to be used as a jail-free card for not answering any work-related contacts. The law states a person’s refusal will be considered unreasonable under certain conditions, taking into account:

• The reason for the contact
• The method of contact and whether it caused disruption to the employee
• The compensation (monetary or non-monetary) to the employee
• The employee’s role and level of responsibility
• The employee’s personal circumstances

Employees should also understand that Employers are NOT prohibited from contacting or attempting to contact them. The laws simply underscore the fact that you might not have to respond should you have reasonable explanations.

Note: If an employer or company is regarded as a small business (with less than 15 employees including freelance, part-time, and full-time), the new laws will commence a year later, on 26 August 2025.

How Does the “Right to Disconnect” Work?

The new laws on the “Right to Disconnect” are supposed to trigger a kind of organizational decision to articulate expectations on whether communication should be initiated or responded to reasons of concern.

While the conditions where a refusal is regarded as unreasonable are still vague, it serves as a conversation initiator to bridge the expectation differences between employees and employers.

Government’s Intervention

Employers and employees are suggested to resolve any disputes that arise. Should any disputes remain unresolved at workplace level, apply to the Fair Work Commission (FWC) for a “stop order” and let the FWC come up with a solution that is considered appropriate to the situation.

The FWC acts as a judge, to determine whether the reasons for refusal are valid. This can help stop employees from abusing the new laws to unreasonably refuse contact, or employers from over-demanding employees to take care of work-related issues outside office hours.

If an employer is found violating employee rights, the issue can then be escalated to the FWO, which has an enforcement role. The employer may be subject to penalties of up to $18,780 for an individual or $93,000 for a body corporate per contravention.

What Impact Does the “Right to Disconnect” Have on the Workplace?

The effects of the “Right to Disconnect” are foreseen to be evident in the current trend of remote working. The comfort of working just a few steps away from bed instead of the traditional office setting is eroding the boundaries between work and life.

Employees working from home and enjoying flexible hours were indirectly trained to be always available outside of traditional workplace and office hours. After the enactment, employers can no longer take advantage of that, giving them back their private lives.

Those who work on call or shift can also benefit from this opportunity to win their well-deserved compensation for the extra hours in the future.

Challenges to Embrace

The gray area of judging whether a refusal is reasonable or unreasonable is certainly the most difficult part to grapple with in the industry. There is an evitable gap between employees’ and employers’ interpretation of “reasonable“.

This left the employers being the right holder to determine the scope of the policies, in a way that favors them and complies with the law minimally in most cases. Guidance should be given to employers, with specifications and concrete examples of possible reasons for refusal in real life.

The legislation also benchmarks the quality of employers. Employers who do not want to be the organization that is overworking its employees, and employees can use this as feedback on whether they would like to work for the organization.

Protect Your Employees’ Rights With Pacific Prime

While disconnecting from work after hours is going to enhance employees’ work satisfaction and work-life balance significantly, employees nowadays are looking for more than just that. They are in search of a workplace that shows respect and appreciation.

And here’s where your employee benefits package comes into play. By offering tailored perks to every unique employee, they will feel valued in the company and their contributions will be acknowledged.

That said, optimizing your employee benefits is no easy task. But Fret not!

Pacific Prime has over 20 years of experience customizing employee benefits from all business sectors. We understand the nuances of employees’ needs across all demographics and excel at finding and negotiating the most cost-effective package with a reputed insurer for you.

Contact us today to book a benefit review!

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Eric Chung

Content Creator at Pacific Prime

Eric is an experienced content writer specializing in writing creative copies of marketing materials including social media posts, advertisements, landing pages, and video scripts.

Since joining Pacific Prime, Eric was exposed to a new world of insurance. Having learned about insurance products extensively, he has taken joy and satisfaction in helping individuals and businesses manage risks and protect themselves against financial loss through the power of words.

Although born and raised in Hong Kong, he spent a quarter of his life living and studying in the UK. He believes his multicultural experience is a great asset in understanding the needs and wants of expats and globe-trotters.

Eric’s strengths lie in his strong research, analytical, and communication skills, obtained through his BA in Linguistics from the University of York and MSc in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) from the University of Bristol.

Outside of work, he enjoys some me-time gaming and reading on his own, occasionally going absolutely mental on a night out with friends.

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