Two unrelated but connected paths towards the future of work have emerged in the southern hemisphere in the past month.
On one of those tracks is a new “right to disconnect” law. Workers in Australia are legally allowed to refuse to respond to workplace communication outside of contracted hours. Advocates of the scheme describe it as a win-win scenario for employers and employees, saying that workers who can rest and recharge in their downtime are more likely to be focused during their contracted hours, which can in turn only benefit the institutions and companies they work for. The policy also sets out clear guidelines for any needs-basis or “fair” out-of-hours contact.
On the other path, there is the head of an Australian mining firm who wants to maximise productivity during working hours by holding its office workers “all day long”. Chris Ellison, managing director of Mineral Resources in Perth, said during a presentation of the company’s fiscal performance that he didn’t want employees to even leave the building to buy a cup of coffee as it was bad for the firm’s bottom line, in comments reported by the BBC. The company’s western Australia offices are said to have a range of facilities to keep employees on-site, which echoes the pre-pandemic era when tech firm workers were said to be at work all the time, chewing up the dozens of hours every week at well-appointed, never-leave campuses.
Many would argue that both paths inevitably intertwine.
Mr Ellison’s maximum-output, high-performance, hold-employees-captive philosophy sits both comfortably and uncomfortably with the idea of clear boundaries between work and life and uninterrupted leisure time. But it also signals a new frontier in the pandemic-driven saga of what the future of work looks like.
Some have already pointed out that the right to disconnect is a nice idea in theory, but no more than that
The concept of the right to disconnect is not unique to Australia. France introduced similar legislation eight years ago and requires all but the smallest companies to detail when employees can disconnect. Other countries, including Germany, Canada and the Philippines, have similar laws in place in an attempt to mitigate against overload.
Several European companies instituted regulations and requirements years ago, back in the era when the BlackBerry was the smartphone of choice firmly tethered to its user’s hand, requiring employees to set down their devices over the weekend. An AFP report published in 2014 quotes one top European executive as saying: “I take a last look at my BlackBerry on Saturday morning and then I put it aside for the rest of the weekend. I don’t have to read my emails simply because someone somewhere is sending them to me.”
Set aside for a moment any incredulity about the choice of technology back then and recall, perhaps, that many knowledge workers had a slimmer portfolio of platforms to manage in their daily lives, with a lot of decisions and the business of work often driven by email. The concept of managing your inbox to zero was a popular response to the realities of digital working back then.
A decade later, most of those knowledge workers navigate an ever-expanding app-and-digital platform-driven world designed to improve communication, productivity and transparency, but also increasing the chance of facing issues such as workplace burnout and stress-related problems. For workers of today, their email inbox might be the least of their worries.
Some have already pointed out that the right to disconnect is a nice idea in theory, but no more than that. In time we will see what the workload of the Australia’s Fair Work Commission turns out to be. The FWC is charged with dispute resolution if companies and their workers are unable to resolve work-related issues themselves. If their caseload becomes busy, it probably means the regulations are effective but contested.
Those who sit in territories outside such regulatory frameworks will also wonder about the practicality of the “right to disconnect” rule and may point to their suitability in some commercial environments in a world where your smartphone powers almost every part of your waking world, be it for work or leisure.
While many people rightly yearn for equilibrium in their work and life, you can also easily imagine a world where those performative and cliched interview questions – like “why should I hire you”, “where do you see yourself in five years’ time” and “what’s your greatest strength”, which favour half-truth responses about relentlessness, always-on mentalities and resilience – are being met with incredulous silence, as the candidate replies “disconnected from you outside contracted hours”.
But something should give, even if government legislation on disconnection might be considered unnecessarily interventionist or unworkable in some industries.
In truth, the answers should be coming from the boardrooms themselves. Far better for companies to have charters, their own regulations and culture statements to guide them and be held accountable to, than for a nationwide regulatory framework. Far better, too, if other solutions are trialled simultaneously, such as the four-day week experiment in Dubai over the several weeks of the summer. Experiment, not mandate, could be a guiding principle.
With the five-year anniversary of the pandemic-induced work-from-home world soon upon us, it’s still unclear what the future of knowledge work truly looks like. We’ve developed an entire vocabulary to describe what’s going on, from hybrid to the great resignation, from quiet quitting to silent layoffs, from coffee badging to resenteeism, and so on, without ever really seeing it through a longer lens. We’ve witnessed a sequence of small changes after a period of fundamental uprooting.
Don’t be surprised if some version of “highly connected weeks and disconnected leisure time” becomes the next big trend, as employers and employees tussle over what’s fair in work and life and navigate a discussion on balance and value.
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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German intelligence warnings
- 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
- 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
- 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250
Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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Kat Wightman's tips on how to create zones in large spaces
- Area carpets or rugs are the easiest way to segregate spaces while also unifying them.
- Lighting can help define areas. Try pendant lighting over dining tables, and side and floor lamps in living areas.
- Keep the colour palette the same in a room, but combine different tones and textures in different zone. A common accent colour dotted throughout the space brings it together.
- Don’t be afraid to use furniture to break up the space. For example, if you have a sofa placed in the middle of the room, a console unit behind it will give good punctuation.
- Use a considered collection of prints and artworks that work together to form a cohesive journey.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
FIGHT CARD
Welterweight Mostafa Radi (PAL) v Tohir Zhuraev (TJK)
Catchweight 75kg Leandro Martins (BRA) v Anas Siraj Mounir (MAR)
Flyweight Corinne Laframboise (CAN) v Manon Fiorot (FRA)
Featherweight Ahmed Al Darmaki (UAE) v Bogdan Kirilenko (UZB)
Lightweight Izzedine Al Derabani (JOR) v Atabek Abdimitalipov (KYG)
Featherweight Yousef Al Housani (UAE) v Mohamed Arsharq Ali (SLA)
Catchweight 69kg Jung Han-gook (KOR) v Elias Boudegzdame (ALG)
Catchweight 71kg Usman Nurmagomedov (RUS) v Jerry Kvarnstrom (FIN)
Featherweight title Lee Do-gyeom (KOR) v Alexandru Chitoran (ROU)
Lightweight title Bruno Machado (BRA) v Mike Santiago (USA)
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
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The years Ramadan fell in May
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Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
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The specs: 2018 Chevrolet Trailblazer
Price, base / as tested Dh99,000 / Dh132,000
Engine 3.6L V6
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Power 275hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque 350Nm @ 3,700rpm
Fuel economy combined 12.2L / 100km
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Sunday, February 3, 2019 - Rome to Abu Dhabi
1pm: departure by plane from Rome / Fiumicino to Abu Dhabi
10pm: arrival at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
Monday, February 4
12pm: welcome ceremony at the main entrance of the Presidential Palace
12.20pm: visit Abu Dhabi Crown Prince at Presidential Palace
5pm: private meeting with Muslim Council of Elders at Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
6.10pm: Inter-religious in the Founder's Memorial
Tuesday, February 5 - Abu Dhabi to Rome
9.15am: private visit to undisclosed cathedral
10.30am: public mass at Zayed Sports City – with a homily by Pope Francis
12.40pm: farewell at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
1pm: departure by plane to Rome
5pm: arrival at the Rome / Ciampino International Airport
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Dunki
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The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
