One Year On: Is Your Business Actually Compliant With the Right to Disconnect? Compliance for 2026
- P&P Consulting
- 11 minutes ago
- 5 min read
This week marks an important checkpoint for Australian employers.
The right to disconnect has now applied to non-small business employers since 26 August 2024, and to small business employers since 26 August 2025. That means many businesses are no longer in the “getting ready” phase. They are now in the “can we show this is working in practice?” phase.
For employers, this is not just an HR policy issue. It also connects directly with workload, stress, fatigue, psychosocial hazards, consultation, manager behaviour and, for certified or certification-ready businesses, ISO 45001 and ISO 45003 alignment.
A policy sitting in a folder is not enough. The real question is whether your workplace expectations, communication habits and WHS systems support the right to disconnect in day-to-day operations.
What Is the Right to Disconnect Compliance requirements in 2026?
The right to disconnect gives eligible employees the right to refuse to monitor, read or respond to work-related contact outside their working hours, unless that refusal is unreasonable.
This can include contact from an employer, manager, client, supplier or other third party.
The law does not create a blanket ban on after-hours contact. There will still be situations where contact is reasonable, particularly in urgent operational, safety or emergency circumstances. However, employers need to be clear about when contact is genuinely required and when it is simply habit, convenience or poor planning.
That distinction matters.
If managers regularly contact employees after hours about non-urgent matters, or employees feel they are expected to respond immediately, the business may be creating unnecessary legal and psychosocial risk.
Why This Is Also a WHS Issue
Out-of-hours contact can become more than an employment relations issue. It can also contribute to psychosocial hazards.
Psychosocial hazards are aspects of work that may cause psychological or physical harm. These can include high job demands, poor support, low role clarity, poor organisational change management, remote or isolated work, conflict, bullying, harassment and exposure to traumatic material.
After-hours contact may contribute to risk where it creates:
Unclear expectations about availability
Excessive workload or time pressure
Inadequate recovery time
Stress or fatigue
Role conflict between work and personal responsibilities
A culture where employees feel they must always be “on”
Under WHS laws, employers must manage risks to health and safety, including psychological health, so far as is reasonably practicable. That means businesses should identify psychosocial hazards, assess the risks, implement controls and review whether those controls are effective.
A right to disconnect review is therefore a useful opportunity to check whether your HR and WHS systems are working together.
Where ISO 45001 and ISO 45003 Fit In
For businesses working towards ISO readiness, the right to disconnect is a practical example of where HR, WHS and management systems overlap.
ISO 45001 provides a framework for managing occupational health and safety risks. It focuses on leadership, worker consultation, hazard identification, risk assessment, controls, legal obligations, performance evaluation and continual improvement.
ISO 45003 provides guidance on managing psychological health and safety at work, including psychosocial risks, within an occupational health and safety management system.
Together, they encourage businesses to move beyond reactive problem-solving and build a structured, evidence-based approach.
That means a business should be able to show:
It understands its legal and other obligations
It has consulted workers about relevant risks
It has identified psychosocial hazards
It has implemented practical controls
Managers understand their responsibilities
Controls are reviewed and improved over time
Records are kept to demonstrate what has been done
This is where many businesses fall short. They may have a policy, but little evidence that expectations have been communicated, managers have been trained, or after-hours contact risks have been assessed.
Common Gaps Employers Should Look For
A 2026 review should look beyond whether the business has copied a right to disconnect clause into a handbook.
Common gaps include:
Managers still sending routine messages after hours
Employees not knowing when they are expected to respond
No clear process for urgent or emergency contact
Out-of-hours work being normalised but not recorded
Flexible work arrangements creating blurred boundaries
Psychosocial risks missing from the WHS risk register
No evidence of consultation with employees
Policies that do not align with actual workplace behaviour
No training for managers on reasonable contact
No review of workload, fatigue or recovery time
These gaps can create risk even where the employer has good intentions.
A Practical Employer Checklist
A strong right to disconnect review should include the following steps.
Review your current policyCheck whether your employment contracts, handbook, flexible work policy and communication policy clearly explain after-hours contact expectations.
Define reasonable contactClarify what types of contact may be reasonable, such as safety issues, urgent operational matters or genuine emergencies.
Train managersMake sure managers understand that convenience is not the same as urgency. They should know when to call, when to schedule-send, and when to wait.
Consult employeesAsk workers whether they feel pressure to respond outside hours and whether workload or communication practices are affecting recovery time.
Update the WHS risk registerInclude relevant psychosocial hazards, such as workload, fatigue, poor role clarity or lack of support.
Review flexible and remote work practicesFlexible work can be positive, but it should not create an expectation of constant availability.
Keep evidenceRecord consultation, policy updates, training, risk assessments and actions taken. This is especially important for ISO readiness.
Review and improveSet a date to review whether the controls are working. A once-off policy update will not be enough.
Why This Matters for Small and Growing Businesses
Many small and medium businesses operate informally. Managers text staff after hours. Employees check emails at night. Teams use messaging apps across time zones. Everyone is busy, and the line between urgent and non-urgent can become blurred.
That informality may feel efficient, but it can create risk as the business grows.
A simple, proportionate system is usually enough to start. Employers do not need to overcomplicate it. They do need clear expectations, manager consistency, worker consultation and evidence that psychosocial risks are being managed.
Final Thought
The right to disconnect compliance for 2026 is not just about switching off a phone. It is about whether your business has healthy, lawful and sustainable expectations around work.
In 2026, employers should be asking:
Can we show our managers understand the rules?Can we show our employees know their rights and responsibilities?Can we show we have considered psychosocial risk?Can we show our systems are ISO-ready?
If the answer is unclear, now is the right time to review.
Need Help?
We help businesses review HR policies, WHS systems, psychosocial risk controls and ISO 45001 readiness.
Book a HR, WHS and ISO readiness check to identify gaps, strengthen your systems and make sure your documentation matches how your workplace actually operates.
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