Australia has become another country that gives workers the right to ignore work-related emails and phone calls after office hours. The bill that gives employees the right not to be contacted after office hours comes into effect today.
Support for this bill increased because the use of digital technology is now increasing, especially after the Covid-19 pandemic is seen to invade the personal time of workers. In a poll conducted by the Australia Institute last year, the country's workers were found to work an average of 281 hours of unpaid overtime, which equates to A$130 billion (~RM 383 billion) in free productivity to employers.
The movement to request the right not to be contacted after office hours started in France in 2016 before also being introduced in Belgium and Portugal. In South Korea, civil servants' computers are turned off after office hours to prevent them from working overtime.
Another movement that is gaining support is working four days a week with experiments finding that employees are healthier and happier with no reduction in productivity for the company. In Malaysia, all of the above are supported by the working class but are quite feared by the MEF.