Are blurred boundaries undoing the benefits of increased flexibility?

The good news is that hybrid working appears to be here to stay. The bad news is the benefits work/life balance is supposed to bring may be increasingly off-balance.  

Many employees are enjoying a level of flexibility in their work lives that has been unprecedented. The pandemic may have forced the issue of working from home, but since employees have experienced the flexibility it offers, hybrid working conditions or more flexible hours are increasingly considered ‘the norm’.  

While working remotely has many perks - time saved on office travel, ability to set your own hours so you can fit in ‘other than work’ obligations like school drop-offs and pick-ups - this flexibility also comes at a cost. When your employees are trying to achieve a work/life balance from the same place where they work and live their lives, these ‘flexible work boundaries' can easily turn into ‘no boundaries,' which can impact both your employees’ and their families’ health and wellbeing.  

When work-life balance turns into work-life integration 

There are several factors that can be causing this blurring of the boundaries. When you work from home, you do not physically leave your place of work. So, there is no physical cut-off between your work hours and your home time. The greatest contributor to blurring the boundaries between your work and home life is the pressure to be ‘always on.’ 

Even before the pandemic, a culture of ‘always being on’ had infiltrated our work lives, easily facilitated by our dependence on mobile devices in both our work and social lives. As we moved to working from home, this ‘always on’ culture increased as everyone adapted to this new way of working.  

Whether there was an employer expectation that employees should check emails outside of work hours, or employees felt that the expectation was there, working from home made it harder not to respond to work after hours. The anxiety and stress this expectation creates can lead to burnout, lower productivity, and disengagement. It also, often, causes tension in the family, piling on even more stress. Even if employees are not actually working after hours, the expectation to be ‘always on’ can still have the same negative impact on their health and wellbeing.  

So, what can be done in a world where most people find it hard to be away from their phones for any amount of time? Is it time to do as Spain, France, Belgium, Portugal and Canada have done and legislate ‘right to disconnect’ laws for all employees? 

What does the right to disconnect mean?

In its simplest form, the ‘right to disconnect’ is the right to ‘unplug’ from your workplace after your agreed working hours. So, you do not need to check work emails or respond to work phone calls in your after hours. It is designed to reduce what has become known as ‘availability creep.’ Employees who not only respond to work requests out of hours but feel obligated to always be available. This can result in incessant checking and refreshing of work emails, guilt for switching off their devices, or not switching off at all and working later and later. Although most Australians would be aware of the introduction of the ‘right to disconnect’ overseas, many would be unaware that it is already a part of Enterprise Agreements in certain professions in Australia. This is especially true for industries that have a higher-than-average exposure to fast-paced and stressful work environments. For example, since 2021, officers in the Victorian Police Force have a ‘right to disconnect’ in place.

Disconnecting to create boundaries

There is no need for employers to wait for the government to legislate a disconnection policy. It is possible for businesses and organisations to proactively address this issue and create their own policy. 

But to be clear, there is no ‘one size fits all’ solution. After all, depending on your business, there may be occasions when it’s necessary to be contactable after hours. Managers may need the discretion to request different time commitments for specific projects or deadlines as agreed with employees. At the same time, there is a challenge around employees who want to set their own hours rather than follow the 9 to 5.30 routine. Naturally, this policy needs to work for both your business and your employees. It may be that it is tailored to individuals and there may be a need to focus more on performance measurement rather than hours.

Embedding the ‘off switch’ in the culture

Once these boundaries have been set and agreed upon, make sure everyone knows why this policy is being implemented and keep the importance of everyone’s health and wellbeing and that of the business high on the agenda.  

Management is critical in helping to flick the off switch on an ‘always on’ culture. Leaders need to bring to life the idea that we are not always available, and that is a good thing. They should ensure that they are not emailing or calling at night, or responding to calls and emails, and demonstrate that disconnecting is a strength that has a positive influence on culture. After all, it’s as much for their health and wellbeing as it is for every other employee. 

Using technology wisely  

Technology may have got us into this, but it can also help get us out. With people working their own hours, different people on the same team may work earlier or later than others. But even if the people receiving the email should not open it because it is after hours, we all know that many of us have an almost Pavlov’s dog response to an incoming email ping.  

It’s simply a matter of common courtesy not to send emails late at night. Both managers and employees should use scheduling to delay delivery on emails outside of normal hours. They should also set controls for scheduling, blocking times, and silencing notifications.  

The hybrid environment and flexible work hours are still very much in their infancy for many businesses and organisations. But there’s no doubt that they’re here to stay and that means adapting, learning, and making the effort to get it right. Because what we do know is that when the boundaries between work and home get blurred, the health of your employees takes a dive and productivity along with it. But get it right and deliver the work/life balance employees are looking for and you will have a happier, healthier, and more stable workforce that delivers greater productivity and innovation.