With boundaries between work and personal life growing blurrier than ever, there is a growing movement across the globe to formalise and even commit to policy, the right of employees to disconnect completely during personal downtime.
While that is one response to the challenge of employees feeling pressurised to be available at all times – even while on leave – finding a win-win solution requires a more nuanced approach, a leadership expert says.
“For a while during and after the global pandemic lockdowns, as workplaces grappled with making work-from-home and hybrid solutions fair to both employer and employee, there was a greater representation of employee voice. They felt they were heard and their mental health was taken into account as it related to boundaries,” says Advaita Naidoo, Africa MD at Jack Hammer, Africa’s largest executive search firm.
“However as the years passed, this alertness to boundaries faded. Fast forward to today, where retrenchments and layoffs are never far from mind, in a context of local and global economic turmoil and uncertainty, many workers feel that they have little choice but to be available and performing at all times.”
However this is a recipe for burnout, resentment and ultimately an unproductive workforce, which should lead employers to think seriously about, and communicate, expectations around availability vs the right to disconnect, Naidoo says.
Research by Eurofound, a European Union agency providing knowledge to assist in the development of better social, employment and work-related policies, found that in companies with a right to disconnect policy, 92% of workers reported better work-life balance, compared to 80% in companies without such policies. Twice as many workers reported very high levels of job satisfaction in companies with a right to disconnect policy, while 28% of workers in companies with a right to disconnect policy experienced stress or anxiety, compared to 38% in companies without this right.
It was also found that workers who regularly work remotely are more likely to work longer than is contractually required. Close to one fifth of the survey respondents reported working additional hours because they were contacted outside of working hours.
The right-to-disconnect issue has led to a number of countries introducing legislation, and many more companies introducing policies in an attempt to address concerns. Australia is the latest country to join the movement, ruling that employees can refuse contact outside of working hours unless deemed reasonable, such as in the case of emergency.
Naidoo says while there is a case to be made for policies and legislation, the first step – for companies and leaders who have not yet done so – would be to have the conversation and ensure everyone is on the same page with regards to expectations around personal time off.
“Most everyone understands that we as humans need time to disconnect completely, to recharge and ensure we have the work-life balance that allows us to perform optimally at work while maintaining optimal mental health. So it is important for employees to understand what is expected of them, so that they don’t feel torn between loyalty and support to the company 24/7, and the need to switch off.
“This message has to be clear, and modelled from the top. If the culture from the top from the leaders is not in line with the stated expectations, there will be tension and a sense of obligation and guilt.”
An example of this would be if, for instance, a manager or leader prefers to catch up with mails after hours. It should then be clearly communicated that even though you might receive communication after hours, you are not required to respond immediately.
Remote workers also need to ensure they keep their slate clean. If, for instance, they take time out during the day for personal reasons, which then requires them to catch up after hours, that should not be viewed as encroachment on their personal time.
“Awareness around the right to disconnect is an issue whose time has arrived for companies and leaders serious about the wellbeing and productivity of their teams. Recognising the need for clear expectations and reviewing the status quo needs to be quickly followed up with communication and implementation. Policies are good, but not always necessary or realistic, given the diverse work arrangements across most companies. But getting everyone on the same page with regards to expectations will go a long way to ensuring the health of both company and employee.”