Europe
A new report from the Eurofound research agency has found that teleworkers are twice as likely to exceed the 48-hour working time limit as workers onsite and are significantly more likely to work in their free time. This underlines the importance of securing a right to disconnect and the report looks at the experience of the first four Member States that introduced rules and agreements on the right to disconnect prior to 2021. These have demonstrated the pivotal role of the social partners in ensuring these rules are translated into reality on the ground. The report argues that new agreements and texts addressing the right to disconnect will need to consider the issues that lead to the ‘perceived’ need for constant connection, such as workload, lack of training and work processes that feed over-connection. In conclusion, the report says that while clear evidence is still lacking, social partners’ experiences at company level suggest that positive changes in company culture are taking place following the introduction of the right to disconnect.
