What is the right to disconnect 

Remote working employees often use instant messaging, texting and video conferencing to keep in touch with colleagues and clients. However, because these forms of employee communication are constantly accessible, it means that some employees are expected to respond to messages outside of what would have been their standard working day if they were in the office.

The right to disconnect is your employee’s ability to stop working outside of conventional working hours, even if they’re working from home. Staff might find that they are still expected to answer calls, texts, emails or other forms of digital message during unsociable hours, which means that they can’t fully ‘switch off’ and relax. Some employees report feeling more fatigued or stressed when they have limited time to rest between work periods

Is there a right to disconnect UK law?

Some public sources note that countries such as France and Ireland have introduced right-to-disconnect legislation frameworks. Public sources describe these frameworks as outlining expectations around work-related communication outside regular working hours. However, there is currently no such law in the UK. Some employers choose to introduce their own disconnect-from-communications policy.

Some employers view such policies as supporting their recruitment or retention efforts. It may also help you to retain staff, as they could be less likely to look elsewhere if they don’t feel too overwhelmed in their current role.

A survey by Ipsos found that 6 in 10 employees would like a law in place that allowed them to disconnect from work outside of working hours. The survey suggests that many employees associate disconnection policies with a healthier work-life balance. 

Right to disconnect and Working Time Regulations 1998

Even though the UK does not have a right-to-disconnect law. Public sources describe the Working Time Regulations 1998 as setting out certain rules related to working hours and rest periods.

Public guidance on the Working Time Regulations 1998 outlines limits on average weekly working hours and explains that some workers may choose to opt out of certain provisions. Public commentary suggests that the legislation does not prescribe when working hours must fall, and public sources note that these factors may influence how organisations think about communication outside typical working patterns.

How to introduce disconnect policy

Introducing a policy that allows employees to disconnect may help clarify when employees typically respond to calls, texts or emails, and when they can disconnect. This means that if there is any confusion about when they are allowed to take time out from these duties, you may refer to your policy.

Some employers view a disconnect policy as a way to clarify expectations and support employee wellbeing. It may help reduce situations where employees feel obliged to respond, texts and calls regarding work while on holiday.

Policy key points

To create your policy, you might want to consider what key points you are looking to address. It’s a good idea to make these as clear as possible to employees, so that they’re easy for them to find and understand. You might decide to include a set of conditions in your remote working or flexible working policy.

This could include the following:

• The working hours that each employee has and what is considered ‘out of work’
• What forms of communication each employee is allowed to disconnect from
• If there are any possible exceptions to this rule
• When they are able to take breaks in their shift, particularly when they are working remotely
• When employees are expected to attend meetings
• What constitutes a healthy work-life balance
• How to use any work mobiles or laptops for communication
• How many breaks they can take during a shift
• What forms of communication employees can disconnect from during a holiday break or annual leave.

Employee responsibilities

A policy might also outline certain employee responsibilities, in terms of keeping track of and managing their own time while working remotely. While some employers choose to monitor employee work performance, others might trust employees to manage and report any breaks that they take.

Therefore, you might also include in your policy information for employees such as:

• Making sure that they are reporting and managing their breaks correctly
• What to do if they feel as if their current workload is stopping them from taking breaks
• How to use the correct technology to record their time spent working
• How to report any instances where they have felt obliged to respond to a call or email outside of their normal working hours.

Introducing guidelines for being able to disconnect from communications helps employees feel secure that they can take breaks when necessary. It also means that they would have time to rest after work without having to respond to emails, texts, calls and other forms of digital communication.

While a right to disconnect hasn’t yet been introduced into UK law, having a similar policy for this might make your business more attractive to potential candidates, as well as increase retention due to lower rates of stress.