Right to disconnect: the always-on trap

The right to disconnect addresses a boundary problem: digital tools can make work feel permanent. It does not mean nobody may send a message after hours. The problem starts when the organisation expects a reply, rewards constant availability, or treats silence during rest time as poor performance. A late email that can wait is different from a team culture where everyone feels forced to check messages at dinner, on holiday, or while ill.

When answering questions, separate contact from pressure. Contact is the message itself; pressure is the expectation attached to it. If an option says the right is about privacy, cybersecurity, or reducing screen brightness, cross it out. If it mentions rest time, health, burnout, workload boundaries, or always-on availability, you are in the right zone. Also watch the wording: a genuine emergency can justify contact, but routine administration should not become a permanent out-of-hours duty.

Use the morning-after test. Could the employee reasonably read and answer this message at the start of the next working day without penalty? If yes, the boundary is probably respected. If no, the scenario points to always-on work. Picture a shared calendar that blocks evenings as recovery time: the tool is still digital, but its purpose is human. The safest answer protects rest without pretending that every late notification is automatically unlawful.