Belgium Implements The Right To Disconnect Law 

Share post:

A new law in Belgium gives 65,000 federal employees the right to refuse calls and emails from their bosses outside working hours.

According to Petra De Sutter, the Belgian minister for public administration, the right to disconnect will be used to combat “excessive work stress and burn-out” among federal civil servants.

“The computer stays on, you keep reading the emails you receive on your smartphone. To better protect people against this, we now give them the legal right to disconnect,” Sutter said.

It aims to effectively overcome the blurred line between work and personal life, especially now that many people work from home.

The rule also states that workers “should not be disadvantaged by not answering the phone or reading work-related messages outside normal working hours.”

The only exception to the new rule is “exceptional and unforeseen circumstances requiring action that cannot wait until the next working period.”

However, unions and managers have the right to determine what kind of exceptional circumstances are in which the rule does not apply, but Sutter said that workers’ families, rest, and holidays must be respected.

For more information, read the original story in NPR.

SUBSCRIBE NOW

Related articles

Microsoft Pledges to Shield European Cloud Services Amid Rising Geopolitical Tensions

In response to escalating concerns over U.S. government influence on cloud operations, Microsoft has committed to legally contesting...

DOGE Accused of Creating Massive Surveillance System Under Musk-Led Trump Administration

A new opinion piece in the New York Times warns that the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE),...

Is the U.S. Undermining Its Tech Leadership? Visa Crackdowns and China’s Academic Surge Raise Concerns

The United States has long been a magnet for global STEM talent, fueling its dominance in technology and...

US Bank Regulator Hacked – Sensitive Banking Info Stolen

The US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) reported a cybersecurity breach involving unauthorized access to...

Become a member

New, Relevant Tech Stories. Our article selection is done by industry professionals. Our writers summarize them to give you the key takeaways