India does not have specific laws recognising the right to disconnect from work. However, the Constitution, the Directive Principles of State Policy, and various judicial pronouncements have spoken of the right to work in a conducive and healthy environment.
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Soon after death of an EY employee in September, allegedly due to work pressure, MP Shashi Tharoor had said that he would raise the issue in Parliament. He said that “inhumanity at the workplace must be legislated out of existence.” A recent report by The Hindu reveals that Indian women in professional jobs, such as auditing, Information Technology, and media, work more than 55 hours a week. The working hours vary for those who belong to the marginalised sections of society and work in the unorganised sector. According to a study by ADP Research Institute, 49% of Indian workers said workplace stress negatively impacts their mental health. As French politician Benoit Hamon said, “Employees physically leave the office, but they do not leave their work. They remain attached by a kind of electronic leash like a dog. The text, the messages, the emails colonise the life of the individual to the point where he or she eventually breaks down”.
Right to disconnect laws
Such tragic incidents, research, and statements highlight how the right to disconnect is an important right. It allows employees to disconnect from their employer outside of working hours. The Labour Chamber of the French Supreme Court ruled in 2001 that an employee is under no obligation to work from home or take home files and working tools. This decision was subsequently confirmed by the Cour de Cassation (the highest court in the French judiciary), which said, “The fact that [the employee] was not reachable on his cell phone outside working hours cannot be considered as a misconduct”. Portugal has a Right to Disconnect law, which makes it illegal for employers to contact employees outside working hours, except in emergencies. Similarly, according to Article 88 of the Organic Law 3/2018 on the Protection of Personal Data and Guarantee of Digital Rights in Spain, “Public workers and employees shall have the right to switch off devices in order to guarantee that, outside of legal or conventionally established working hours, their time off, leave and holidays are respected, in addition to their personal and family privacy, with the aim of promoting a good work-life balance”. This year, the Australian Parliament passed the Fair Work Legislation Amendment, which gave employees the right to disconnect from work outside of working hours. Ireland has also recognised the right to disconnect for employees.
Where does India stand?
India does not have specific laws recognising the right to disconnect from work. However, the Constitution, the Directive Principles of State Policy, and various judicial pronouncements have spoken of the right to work in a conducive and healthy environment. Article 38 of the Constitution mandates that “the State shall strive to promote the welfare of the people”. Article 39(e) of the Directive Principles of State Policy directs the state to direct its policy towards securing the strength and health of its workers. The Supreme Court, in Vishakha v State of Rajasthan (1997), ruled that sexual harassment at the workplace violates fundamental rights, recognised the right to dignity at the workplace, and issued guidelines to ensure that there is a safe working environment for women and gender equality. In Ravindra Kumar Dhariwal and Ors v. Union of India (2021), the Court read Article 14 to include ideas of inclusive equality to reasonably accommodate persons with disabilities. Justice D.Y. Chandrachud said that an employer must consider an employee’s individual differences and capabilities. In Praveen Pradhan v. State of Uttaranchal (2012), the High Court of Uttarakhand held that “under the pretext of administrative control and discipline, a superior officer cannot be left to enjoy extreme liberty to make the intense humiliation and scolding inhumanly in front of all the subordinate staff members for a little lapse.” Despite the clear recognition of the right to dignity at the workplace and a direction for employers to be sensitive towards mental health concerns, and also laws that fix accountability in the case of breaching working hours, violating dignity is unfortunately common in Indian workplaces.
Prolonged working hours
In 2018, MP Supriya Sule introduced a Private Member Bill in the Lok Sabha, which delineated the right to disconnect from work after working hours. The bill included the provision of a penalty of 1% of the total renumeration of all employees to be paid by companies for noncompliance with its provisions.
However, in recent years, there has been no significant legislative effort to recognise employees’ right to disconnect from work outside working hours or to impose a duty on employers to be mindful of employee well-being and avoid overworking them. Research by Harvard Business Review shows that working prolonged hours causes stress, coronary heart diseases, and impacts overall health. Contrary to the widespread belief that overworked human beings bring in productivity, research by the University of Oxford in collaboration with British multinational telecoms firm BT found a conclusive link between happiness and productivity. Therefore, employers need to take into account psychological factors while dealing with employees. In its march towards becoming the third largest economy by 2030, India must recognise that the right to disconnect will increase productivity and ensure the growth and well-being of both employees and employers.
Rajesh Ranjan, Lawyer and researcher and former co- convenor, Constitutional law Society, National Law University, Jodhpur
Published – December 10, 2024 12:58 am IST