Australia has granted millions of workers the legal right to “disconnect” starting on Monday. This allows employees to ignore unreasonable out-of-hours calls, emails, and texts from their employers, unless the refusal to respond is deemed “unreasonable”.

Unions have welcomed this legislation, stating that it gives workers a way to reclaim a better work-life balance.

The president of the Australian Council of Trade Unions, Michele O’Neil, called it a “historic day for working people” and said that “Australian unions have reclaimed the right to knock off after work.”

In Sydney, people seemed to welcome the change. One not-for-profit worker, Karolina Joseski, shared that she has a hard time disconnecting, and even when not logged on, her brain is constantly working overtime. She said that getting after-hours calls from her boss doesn’t necessarily help in this situation, so the new law is seen as a positive development.

Australia’s top industry body, the Australian Industry Group, gave a critical response to the new “right to disconnect” laws. They argued that the laws were rushed, poorly thought out, and confusing for both employers and employees. The group expressed concern that the laws could prevent employers from contacting employees outside of work hours, such as to offer additional shifts.

These types of “right to disconnect” laws have been implemented in some European and Latin American countries. Research indicates that such policies can have benefits for employees. A recent study by the EU’s Eurofound agency found that over 70% of workers at companies with a right to disconnect policy viewed its impact positively.

Associate professor Chris Wright from the University of Sydney explained that the laws aim to address the issue of “availability creep”, where digital devices like smartphones keep employees constantly connected to their workplace, even outside of normal work hours. He argued that measures like the right to disconnect can help restore boundaries between work and personal life, which is beneficial for both employees and employers, particularly in industries trying to attract new workers.

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The Australian “right to disconnect” law was enacted in February 2024 and came into effect for medium and large companies starting this Monday. Smaller companies with fewer than 15 employees will be covered by the law starting August 26, 2025.

The head of Australia’s workplace relations regulator, the Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth, advised that people should take a “commonsense approach” in applying the new law. The legislation allows workers to be ordered by a tribunal to stop unreasonably refusing out-of-hours contact from their employer. Conversely, employers can be ordered to stop unreasonably requiring employees to respond outside of work hours.

The regulator stated that the question of what counts as “reasonable” will depend on the specific circumstances, including the reason for the contact, the employee’s role, and any compensation provided for extra availability or hours worked.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, whose center-left Labor government pushed through the reform, hailed the new law. He explained that the goal is to ensure people are not expected to be available and working 24 hours a day, as this can be a mental health issue. The law aims to help employees better balance their work and personal lives.