Australia’s Right to Disconnect laws give employees the legal right to refuse work-related contact outside of working hours — including during annual leave. These laws, which took effect on 26 August 2024 for non-small business employers, clarify that an employee on approved leave has no obligation to read, respond to, or action work communications.
Key Takeaways
- The Right to Disconnect provisions under the Fair Work Act 2009 (inserted by the Closing Loopholes legislation) give employees the right to refuse to monitor or respond to work contact outside hours.
- During annual leave, the right is at its strongest — you are on a statutory break and are not required to engage with work at all.
- The right applies to all forms of contact — email, phone, SMS, Slack/Teams messages.
- An employer cannot penalise you for exercising this right.
- Disputes can be resolved through the Fair Work Commission, which can issue orders to stop unreasonable contact.
What the Right to Disconnect Covers
The Fair Work Amendment (Right to Disconnect) Act 2023 inserted section 333M into the Fair Work Act. It provides that an employee may refuse to monitor, read, or respond to contact (or attempted contact) from their employer or a third party outside of their working hours, unless the refusal is unreasonable.
The right covers:
- Phone calls from managers or colleagues
- Emails sent outside your ordinary hours
- Instant messages via Teams, Slack, or WhatsApp
- Text messages related to work
- Any form of electronic communication
How This Applies to Annual Leave
When you are on annual leave, your “working hours” are zero — you have no ordinary hours of work for that period. This means:
- You have the strongest possible protection against out-of-hours contact
- Refusing to read or respond to any work messages during leave is presumed reasonable
- Your employer cannot ask you to “check in” during leave unless it is an exceptional emergency
- A request to respond to emails during leave, if not agreed beforehand, is likely unreasonable
The section applies to “contact or attempted contact” — meaning you do not even have to receive the message. If your employer sends an email during your leave and expects you to read it upon return by close of business, that expectation may itself fall within the scope of the right.
What Makes Contact Reasonable During Leave?
Contact during leave is not automatically prohibited. The Fair Work Act recognises that some contact may be unavoidable. Factors that determine reasonableness include:
- Emergency — is there a genuine operational crisis that requires your specific knowledge?
- Urgency — could the matter wait until your return to work?
- Your role — senior executives may have broader on-call expectations
- Compensation — are you being paid an allowance for being contactable?
- Method of contact — a single urgent phone call is more reasonable than 20 emails
- Agreed terms — does your contract specify on-call expectations during leave?
In practice, very few situations justify contacting an employee on annual leave. If you are contacted, you are within your rights to decide whether to respond based on these factors.
What About Overtime and Penalty Rates?
If you choose to respond to a work contact during leave — and it requires you to perform work — that time counts as work. You are entitled to be paid for it at your appropriate rate, including any overtime or penalty rates that apply.
The Right to Disconnect does not mean you cannot do work during leave. It means you cannot be required or expected to. If you do choose to respond, record the time and ensure you are paid.
FAQ
Can my employer discipline me for not responding during leave?
Not if you are genuinely on leave and the contact was not agreed in advance. Disciplining an employee for exercising the right to disconnect would be a general protections breach under the Fair Work Act.
What if my employment contract says I must be contactable?
Any contract term that requires you to be contactable during leave may be inconsistent with the National Employment Standards and potentially unenforceable. The NES prevails over employment contracts. If your contract was written before the Right to Disconnect laws, that term may no longer be valid.
Does the Right to Disconnect apply to small businesses?
For small business employers (fewer than 15 employees), the Right to Disconnect provisions took effect on 26 August 2025 — one year later than for other businesses. As of July 2026, all employers are covered.
Can I be contacted for a genuine emergency?
Yes. An employer can contact you during leave for a genuine emergency where they need your specific expertise or authorisation. This should be a rare exception. After the emergency, you are not expected to remain available.
What should I do if my employer keeps contacting me on leave?
First, remind them in writing that you are on leave and not available. If it continues, raise it with HR or your manager. You can also seek assistance from the Fair Work Ombudsman or apply to the Fair Work Commission for an order to stop unreasonable contact.