INTRODUCTION
The Right to Disconnect Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on 6 December 2025 signals a major shift in the country’s approach to employee welfare and workplace boundaries, the idea is to create workplace boundaries and mental health awareness in India. In an era where work follows employees far beyond office walls, the Right to Disconnect Bill marks a crucial turning point in India’s labour landscape.
The Right to Disconnect bill was introduced by Supriya Sule (NCP), sparking widespread discussion on what work-life balance ought to mean in the digital age. Though it’s a private member’s bill that rarely passes its way into becoming a law, most are either debated and withdrawn or do not move forward after the government responds. Despite the uncertainty around this idea, the bill has reignited an important conversation about workplace mental health and digital overwork, seeking to give employees the legal right to refuse work-related calls, messages and emails outside official working hours and on holidays.
CONCEPT
Right to disconnect the principal idea, it is to legally abstain employees from feeling obligated to respond to their employers during their personal hours. This new legislation came about in response to growing concerns about work related mental health issues linked to stress, overwork, and exhaustion.
The employees can now make a discretion on whether to respond to the employers after working hours are over, allowing them the ability to disconnect from work and primarily not engage in working related electronic communication such as emails or messages.
The employees will not face any penalties or disciplinary actions, the bill has proposed a welfare authority to monitor compliance, investigate complaints and to impose fines on noncompliant firms.
ABOUT THE BILL
The bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha, on the fifth day of parliamentary winter session which started on December 1, the Right to Disconnect bill is a private member’s bill by Supriya Sule MP from the Nationalist congress. According to Supriya Sule, this bill “fosters a better quantity of life and a healthier work-life balance by reducing the burnout caused by today’s digital culture”.
ORIGIN
The concept “Right to Disconnect” has become a global concept, in response to the rapid digitalisation and technological advancement pushing employees to work beyond their capacity.
In Europe, the concept of Right to Disconnect first evolved, sparking a wave of policy and legal innovations. France, the pioneer of this movement, ruled in 2001 a judicial decision for the case (Case No. 99-42.727) in the labour Chamber of the French supreme court that an employer is under no obligation to work from home. This judicial stance was later reinforced by the Court of Cassation, which further clarified the boundaries between personal time and professional obligations. The court expressly stated that “The fact that (the employee) was not reachable on his cell phone outside working hours can’t be considered as misconduct.” These rulings were enhanced in shaping France border efforts to improve quality of work-life.
This judicial decision cultivated the core idea of Right to Disconnect which later transformed into a legislation “El Khomri Law” (Right to Disconnect) passed in 2016 in France emphasized the employee’s right to rest and personal time, recognizing digital tools extended work into personal life.
The radiating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have significantly increased dependence on technology and digital networking, resulting in a worldwide shift in work culture. In response, several countries including Belgium, Argentina, the Philippines and Australia have introduced similar measures. Australia adopted its legislation in 2024, extending protections to millions of workers in a labour market struggling with burnout and rising mental health concerns.
CHANGES BROUGHT IN BY THIS BILL
In India prior to this Right to Disconnect Bill there was no specific codified law governing this particular issue, however, the constitution, the directive principle 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 principle of state policy directs the state of its policy towards securing the strength and health of its workers.
The present Right to Disconnect bill democratizes the workplace by creating a balance between working hours and personal hours for employees, limiting employers’ ability to pressure the employees to work overtime, and adhering to unreasonable deadlines and communication norms.
This Right to Disconnect Bill allows employees to refrain from responding after working hours, freeing them from any obligation to attend calls, emails, messages, or video meetings and protecting them from penalties or disciplinary consequences.
It is the duty of the employer to define boundaries. If the companies rely on digital tools, they must adopt internal policies that define working hours emergency contact rules and exceptional protocols for genuine needed or urgent work. Workers who choose to reply to after-hours communications must receive overtime pay at the normal rate.
The Right to Disconnect Bill imposes a sanction at a rate of 1% of the total remuneration of its employees on entities(company/societies) for any noncompliance with the provision This bill also proposes the state government to establish a “digital detox centres” to provide counselling and awareness on healthy technology use. The bill proposes an “Employees welfare Authority” to enforce the right, conduct baseline studies and negotiate terms on after hours engagement for companies with over 10 workers.
WHY IS THIS BILL NEEDED?
Employees in India have constantly faced issue regarding sexual harassment and exploitation, despite of various judicial pronouncement making, clear recognition of the right to dignity and direction for employers to be sensitive towards topics like mental health concerns and also laws that fix accountability in the case of breaching working hours, violating dignity is unfortunately common in Indian workspace.
Rising IT sectors, desk-oriented jobs and digitalisation which although has created flexible working hours, in return pressurised employees to work during their personal hours. In recent times mental health has become a rising issue in India amongst the youth due to career pressure and workload, employers pushing employees and interns to work with unreasonable deadlines and excessive workload.
Studies show that employees that are expected to be available around the clock tend to exhibit risks like overwork, sleep deprivation, emotional and mental exhaustion and develop psychological conditions like depression anxiety due to stress. Individuals who are able to manage their work-life are better functioning and lead a healthier life in comparison to individuals who are under constant workload and pressure.
In the case of Anna Sebastian Perayil (EY Employee) a 26-year-old chartered accountant working at Ernst & Young (EY) in Pune died in July 2024.Her mother wrote a widely publicised letter to the EY India chairman, blaming an “overwhelming workload” and “glorification” of overwork for her daughter’s death. This case triggered a federal investigation by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and the Union Ministry of Labour and Employment.
This bill champions for the rights and welfare of employees, by mandating individual entities to negotiate out-of-hour service conditions with their employees and upholding the right of employees to disconnect.
CITIZEN’S WELFARE
The Bill seeks to recognise the Right to Disconnect as a way to reduce stress and ease tension between an employees’ personal and professional life. The Bill seeks to constitute the ‘Employees Welfare Authority’ for the purpose of the Act, consisting of ex-officio members of important Ministries as specified in the Act.
The Authority shall discharge such functions as may be necessary to ensure the welfare of employees in the country and formulate a charter that outlines the terms and conditions to be negotiated between employees and employers of a company or society. In an era of digitalisation where the boundaries between work and personal life are increasingly blurred, “The Right to Disconnect “creates an environment that counters recent issues like mental health and burnouts due to excessive work and sleep deprivation.
CONCLUSION
The bill gives employees the discretion to not to work in their personal hours and not feel obligated to take calls and respond to email, without facing any disciplinary action against them, bring in a healthy environment to work and be more productive individually. Digital transformation globally has created flexible working hours but has also invaded the boundaries of personal hours, cross border deadlines and after-hours calls have become normal, therefore the need of this bill is now a necessity not a benefit for the employees.
The lawmakers have recognized this issue and acknowledged the problem, opening conversation on dignity at workplace, respect for personal time and importance of mental health in the digital era. The bill can bring possible change in corporate culture and social acceptance by dismantling the glorified concept of overwork. In the era of constant digitalization of the boundary between professional and personal life, the bill serves as a timely reminder that technological progress must not come at the cost of mental health, dignity, or human working conditions. of mental health, dignity, or human working conditions.
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