OOO 🙅♀️

Remember the good ol’ days? Back when you could power down your clunky desktop computer at 5 p.m., and know that — short of something mildly disastrous happening — you wouldn’t be asked to work again until you reported back to the office the next morning?

Back before laptops and smartphones, you could leave the office and truly unplug. Now, who among us can say they’ve never answered an email at the dinner table? 

Employees today are expected to always be on — both because technology allows your boss to reach you at any moment, and because remote work has blurred the boundaries between labor and life. But what if we could take back our weekends and evenings? What if employers were forced to respect that when their workers are OOO, they shouldn’t call — unless something’s on fire? 

That’s the aim of a new bill in California. The legislation, sponsored by San Francisco Assemblymember Matt Haney , would require companies to come up with a policy that defines employees’ working hours and how they plan to respect their “right to disconnect.” 

If the bill becomes law, it’d be illegal for a manager to contact Californians after hours, unless it’s an emergency, or to work out a scheduling issue. Each offense could result in a $100 fine. 

More than a dozen countries, including France, Australia, and Canada, have similar laws. But “grinding” and hustle culture aren’t nearly as much a part of their national identities as ours here in the U.S. Could the California bill ever succeed — and would it even make our working lives better? 

Advocates say legal guardrails like this could go a long way toward fighting burnout. They point to studies like one conducted in Europe, which found that companies with right-to-disconnect policies had workers who reported better work-life balance, health and well-being, and overall job satisfaction. 

Critics worry the law would kneecap startups, which have a reputation of pushing their workers to the brink in pursuit of growth. They also fret that it’d drive companies out of the state, and impact workers’ ability to choose when they log on.

“It forces [employers] to basically write out a set working schedule, which is really contrary to the concept” of workplace flexibility, says Ashley Hoffman, a senior policy advocate for the California Chamber of Commerce . 

The other issue is that these laws are often very hard to enforce, says Jennifer Moss , a workplace culture expert and the author of The Burnout Epidemic. But she believes that Haney’s bill “is a good first step” and that something, even if it’s imperfect, should be introduced to protect employees’ time.  

“Employers expecting an always-on mentality from their workers is a big issue,” Moss tells us. “The idea of creating a policy that gives people the right to disconnect is something that I think would be valuable.”

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Unplug and Unwind 📵

If you’re feeling run down at work, Google ’s productivity advisor suggests going one step further than simply disconnecting once 5 p.m. rolls around. A few years ago, Laura Mae Martin asked her fellow Googlers to give up their phones, laptops, and tablets for one night a week during the months of January or February. The “No Tech Tuesdays” challenge was a massive success and is now an annual tradition at the company.

In this excerpt from her new book, Uptime, Martin shares how her own digital detox helped her feel more energized and productive than ever — along with 10 tips to help you get started.

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