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About twenty years ago, it was almost unimaginable to contact employees outside working hours, especially on weekends or holidays. Today, however, communication among colleagues or with employers seems to never stop. The sound of a message on WhatsApp has an equal chance of being an invitation to go out as it does of being a boss’s comment or task. Continuous communication, whether for fun or real necessity, has become a daily routine for many.
Many of these habits were brought about by the pandemic, which generally changed the rules related to work. Given that most people worked from home, the distinction between private and business time was lost, and this increasingly causes enormous stress and burnout among employees. A recent study revealed that 44 percent of workers believe they can never disconnect from work, reports the British The Independent. Namely, if you check emails on your phone in the evening or receive calls outside the office – you are not free.
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— That is precisely why granting freedom and recognizing the need for uninterrupted free time for employees is becoming part of basic business etiquette. Today, most organizations have a document that defines their culture and the way employees and superiors relate to each other. However, unlike in the past, when these documents were sterile, incomprehensible, and explained things like handling organizational property, recently, explains HR consultant at Human Capital Jasna Rilović, the content of business etiquette has expanded to include aspects of home upbringing.
– It defines the way of communication, addressing, verbal and written expression, dress code, and all other rules necessary for us to function more easily in an organization – said Rilović.
Civility as Law
However, to make some things less dependent on employers, in recent years, more and more countries are introducing regulations aimed at improving the quality of life for employees and allowing them uninterrupted free time. France is a pioneer in introducing basic etiquette into law. As early as 2013, it adopted a quality of life agreement that encouraged companies to avoid any intrusion into employees’ private lives, and this right was introduced into law in 2016.
Similarly, German companies Volkswagen, BMW, and Puma voluntarily introduced restrictions on when managers may send emails to employees outside working hours. In Belgium, this rule was introduced two years ago for all civil servants, and in Portugal, a law was passed stating that employers must refrain from contacting workers during their vacation, except in emergencies. In the European Union, the right to disconnect was introduced by Italy (2017), Spain (2018), and Ireland (2021), reports Forbes.
What is an Urgent Need?
What is the situation in Croatia? At the beginning of the year, amendments to the Labor Law came into effect, which, among other things, address the issue of contacting employees outside working hours. Article 60 of the Law on Amendments to the Labor Law introduced a rule that implies that during the use of vacation and leave, both the employee and the employer must take into account the right to unavailability in professional communication.
Accordingly, just like in many other countries, employees have the right to refuse tasks and calls outside working hours, without suffering harmful consequences. Nevertheless, many believe that these amendments are not precise enough and that much remains unclear. For example, one article is insufficient to clarify what constitutes an emergency situation or how employees themselves should know whether an email, SMS, or call pertains to something extraordinary. At the same time, no penalties are foreseen for employers who do not adhere to this rule, and unnecessary calls from bosses are increasingly becoming a habit rather than a necessity.
– Major announcements that employers will be deprived of the right to contact employees outside working hours have been reduced to that one article in which employers are advised to consider the balance between employees’ private and professional lives, unless it concerns an urgent need. Of course, the law does not define the term ‘urgent need,’ making it very difficult for employees to prove that the employer contacted them without reason. Employers are also allowed to circumvent this article in legal documents such as employment contracts or collective agreements, so in the end, nothing will come of it. Those who have called and disturbed employees until now will be able to do so in the future because they can refer to some of those exceptions, and such announcements can only wrongly encourage employees to enter into unnecessary conflicts with employers, which they will lose from the start. Thus, it could be said: The mountains trembled, and a mouse was born – commented Rilović, but she emphasized that in Croatia, although it cannot be definitively determined what percentage of employers respect this part of etiquette, this problem is not so pronounced.
