Computerworld reported that the “French law took effect Jan. 1 and requires firms with more than 50 employees to negotiate a “disconnection” rule governing after-hour and vacation communications.” The January 6, 2017 report entitled “Why France’s new ‘right to disconnect’ law matters” included this comment that emails “arriving at night, on weekends and during vacation can create stress and interrupt family life” which is part of the reason that France established the law.
The report also included these comments about Daimler AG (German automotive giant) which now:
…has an optional email feature called “Mail on Holiday.” It automatically deletes incoming emails during time off. An auto reply offers alternative contacts or suggests resending messages once the employee returns. It’s available to 100,000 workers in Germany.
And the Daimler Health management and occupational safety employee guide states:
This prevents congestion in the electronic in-boxes, relieves the pressure of having to read emails during vacations, and the email in-box is empty when the employee returns to work.
However not everyone thinks that the ‘right to disconnect’ is so great including James W. Gabberty (Associate Dean and Professor of Information Systems at New York’s Pace University) who “says the email rule will only erode productivity” which is:
Not confined to a 9-to-5 work regimen, inspiration — the mother’s milk driving innovation that underpins R&D — depends on spontaneously capturing creative thinking,…these fleeting moments of genius” in an email “even when they occur after dinner or in the middle of the night.
What do you think?