Earlier this year, the Federal Parliament passed laws to create a new workplace right: the right to disconnect. On Monday, those laws came into force.

The change came about because lawmakers recognised that technological developments, such as laptops and mobile phones, which allow many employees to work remotely, also allow the workplace to encroach into people’s lives outside of work. This phenomenon was turbocharged during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when workers across the country were directed to work from home using their digital devices, sometimes for months on end.

Employers have increasingly expected their workers to be contactable at all hours to respond to calls, emails, and sometimes return to work. While this is nothing new for nurses, midwives and carers, the legislation acknowledges the psychosocial hazards posed to worker wellbeing by not placing fair boundaries between work and personal time.

This is a massive win for union members, particularly in the health and aged care sectors, where the need to recover and recharge between shifts has never been more important.

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