RIGHT TO DISCONNECT

NEWS

A Right to Disconnect Bill has been introduced in Parliament as a Private Member’s Bill, seeking to give employees the right to not respond to work-related digital communication beyond prescribed working hours. The proposal gains significance amid increasing work-from-home practices and India’s recent shift to the four labour codes.

BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT

• Digital technologies have blurred boundaries between work and personal life.
• Indian labour law traditionally regulates work through time-based constructs such as working hours and overtime.
• The Bill emerges against the backdrop of:
  • Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020
  • Employer control increasingly exercised through emails, calls, and messaging apps.

KEY PROVISIONS OF THE BILL

• Grants employees the right to ignore work-related calls, emails, and messages beyond official working hours.
• Aims to curb after-hours employer intrusion into personal time.
• Intended to improve work-life balance and mental well-being.

MAJOR LEGAL AMBIGUITIES

Undefined Concept of ‘Work’

• The Bill does not clarify whether after-hours digital engagement qualifies as “work”.
• It remains unclear whether such communication:
  • Counts towards working time
  • Attracts overtime compensation
• This creates a gap between communication regulation and working time regulation.

Interaction with Labour Codes

• The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code continues to govern:
  • Daily and weekly working hours
  • Overtime limits
• The Bill does not integrate digital labour into this framework, making the right appear more normative than enforceable.

COMPARATIVE INTERNATIONAL PRACTICES

• European Union: Employer control determines working time, including standby and on-call periods.
• France: Distinguishes working time and rest time; digital communication regulated via collective bargaining.
• Germany: Enforces strict rest periods and limits on employer contact.
• These models address a core question: When does an employee’s time belong to the employer?

CONSTITUTIONAL DIMENSION

• The right has a clear linkage with Article 21 (Right to Life and Personal Liberty), especially individual autonomy.
• However, the Bill:
  • Does not acknowledge this constitutional basis
  • Leaves unclear whether the right is purely statutory or constitutionally grounded