As an employer, it’s reasonable to occasionally contact employees outside normal hours. But Australia’s new Right to Disconnect laws have changed the rules.
What Are the Right to Disconnect Laws?
Employees now have the right to refuse to monitor, read or respond to contact from their employer outside of working hours, unless the refusal is unreasonable.
When Is Refusal Unreasonable?
The legislation considers factors including:
- The reason for the contact and its urgency
- How the contact is made and how disruptive it is
- Whether the employee is compensated for being available
- The employee’s role and level of responsibility
- The employee’s personal circumstances (e.g., family responsibilities)
What Employers Should Do
- Review your contact practices — avoid non-urgent after-hours communications
- Use scheduling tools — draft emails and messages to send during business hours
- Update policies — include right to disconnect provisions in your employment contracts and handbook
- Define on-call arrangements — if after-hours availability is genuinely needed, document and compensate it
Talk to our team about updating your payroll and employment arrangements.