Understanding India's Right to Disconnect Bill: Protecting Employees from After-Hours Work Communications

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New Delhi:

NCP MP Supriya Sule has introduced the Right to Disconnect Bill, 2025, in the Lok Sabha on Friday. This legislation aims to establish a legal framework allowing employees to decline work-related communications outside official hours and during holidays.

The bill was presented during the busy winter session that commenced on December 1. This parliamentary meeting is taking place while the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter rolls continues across 12 states.

Supriya Sule announced on social media that she had introduced three progressive Private Member Bills in Parliament, including the Paternity and Paternal Benefits Bill, 2025, which provides paid leave for fathers to participate in their child's early development, challenging traditional parental role models.

The Right to Disconnect Bill, 2025, stipulates that employees should not be required to respond to work-related communications after working hours or on holidays. It provides workers with the right to refuse calls and emails without facing disciplinary consequences.

Key provisions of the bill include:

Employees are not obligated to answer work communications after hours.

Protection from disciplinary action for declining to respond.

Coverage of all communication forms including phone calls, messages, emails, and video calls.

Requirements for employers and employees to jointly establish emergency contact protocols if necessary.

A proposed penalty of 1 percent of total employee remuneration for organizations that violate these rights.

While protecting personal time, the bill also addresses legitimate emergencies by suggesting the creation of a committee to develop mutually acceptable terms for contacting employees outside working hours.

Employers may communicate during pre-negotiated periods agreed upon by both parties. Additionally, the bill states that employees working beyond office hours should receive overtime compensation at standard wage rates.

The bill's accompanying statement argues that digital technologies, while enhancing flexibility, have fostered an environment of constant availability. Research cited in the bill connects this continuous connectivity to:

Sleep deprivation.

Increased stress and emotional exhaustion.

Telepressure, the compulsion to respond immediately.

"Info-obesity," resulting from constant monitoring of work messages.

Supriya Sule previously introduced similar legislation in 2019. The updated version reflects growing concerns about worker wellbeing in an increasingly digital communication environment. India currently maintains a 48-hour work week, which ranks among the more demanding globally.