Ontario Becomes First Canadian Province To Have a Right To Disconnect Law
Silence your phone and turn off notifications: A new rule in Ontario offers employees the right to ignore work emails, messages, and calls after hours, which is a win for work-life balance.
Employers with 25 or more employees in Ontario must have a documented policy regarding disconnecting outside of business hours as of June 2. The so-called “right to disconnect” legislation was included in the Working for Workers Act, which the Ontario Progressive Conservatives approved in late 2021. It’s the country’s first law of its type.
The only Canadian province having a right to disconnect law is Ontario. Quebec and the federal government have also looked into the proposal, although no legislation has been introduced yet. France was the first country to enact such legislation, and Italy and Slovakia have introduced similar laws since then.