Union pleads for law that states that employees are unavailable outside of work hours

FNV wants the law to stipulate that employees are allowed to ignore non-essential phone calls or emails from their boss outside working hours. The trade union is making this plea after a similar law was implemented in Australia. France also passed a similar law. "It is important that employees have control and autonomy over their work, rest time, and private life," FNV vice-chair Kitty Jong argued.

The union referred to a private member's bill that GroenLinks-PvdA had submitted earlier. FNV said that the treatment of that bill is currently halted. "I am calling on the Tweede Kamer to support and pass this law. It is important that people are protected against work pressures that are too high because that can have drastic consequences," said Jong. The Tweede Kamer is the lower house of the Dutch parliament.

"For their health but also for their income. Many employees are under immense pressure, especially in these times of a shortage of colleagues."

FNV had it set into a collective bargaining agreement for the first time in 2019 that employees are unavailable outside of working hours. This was in the collective bargaining agreement for handicap care. More collective bargaining agreements followed, including one for civil servants.

"But if you only lay down these kinds of rights in collective bargaining agreements, then they can be reopened in every collective bargaining agreement negotiation. That is why it is good that it is now laid down in law for everyone, also to protect vulnerable people," says Jong.