What does the “right to disconnect” from work mean

For a lot of employees, the line between work and non-work time has become increasingly hard to identify. 

What has been called the right to disconnect became law in Ontario at the beginning of December, with changes to the Employment Standards Act. The Act defines disconnecting from work as not engaging in work related communications, and employers with 25 or more employees will now be required to implement a written policy with respect to disconnecting from work.  

While this sounds like a welcome change and a move toward more employee protections, the legislation fails to clearly define any new rights for employees. The legislative changes provide no guidance on what is going to be required in policies about disconnecting from work, and gives no information about how the policies will be enforced. Will employers still be able to call and email their employees as long as this expectation is enshrined in a policy? What can employees do if their employer doesn’t comply? 

While I expect regulations will answer some of those questions in the coming months, we’re still a long way off from a “right to disconnect”.