Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1332685
15 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 24 JANUARY 2021 NEWS Top: Nationalist MEP Roberta Metsola, Konnekt CEO Josef Said, UPE president Graham Sansone, Labour MEP Alex Agius Saliba, the author of the right to disconnect report approvedf by MEPs, and BRND WGN chief executive officer Peter Grech "Bosses will have to answer for actions that discriminate against workers who avail themselves of the right to disconnect" Alex Agius Saliba Konnect, believes the right to disconnect is an unnecessary concept. "From what I've seen, no one has been fired for not answer- ing emails outside of office hours. I, for ex- ample, don't meet clients for dinner – only breakfast or lunch. Mind you, you'll always have workaholics who won't stop and we have had circumstances where we have had to tell employees to delete apps from their phones because it becomes too much," he said, referring to those who take work home on their smartphones. But Said says there are jobs within the in- ternational business sector, where people may need to work outside of office hours, and in that case, it's a work requirement. "We have people in our office who are ad- amant about not working a 5-day week in the office – and we don't force them – a lot of employees like the freedom working from home gives. Working hours have be- come flexible. I have employees who start at 9am or later because they're working out or doing chores – not my business – and I have no problem with them clocking off later." Said says stringent work hours is no longer relevant in 2021, and workers should be valued by the good work they do. "I don't think clients will penalize workers for not answering outside of work hours – if the company is good, and produces good work – the client will leave happy." But digital marketing CEO Peter Grech BRND WGN values the need for people to be less 'connected' than is necessary. "There needs to be a balance between home, family and work time," he says, say- ing the measure of success cannot be the amount of money one makes. "I don't think it's good for people to be too connected. Being stressed is not cool at all... I don't think stress leads to many pos- itive things at all. The reality is that there are different jobs and I don't think you can create one general statement about the way everyone should be disconnected, or could be disconnected." Grech think it is up to individuals to de- cide whether they wanted to be connected or not. "People are more connected and more obsessed with social media and the news, than they are on their work. I think you can easily choose not to have your emails come in on your phone – if you do, it's up to you if you check them." But he thinks leaders and business owners need to lead by example. "If you are sending messages and emails to your staff at 2am you shouldn't expect them to respond." Someone who has carried out academic research on workers' right to disconnect is Union for Professional Educators boss Graham Sansone, who insists unionisation is key to workers seeking to avail this right. "It's the only way, and it applies to any sec- tor. It would be difficult for an employee to reinforce it on an individual basis," he says, "The right to disconnect must be imple- mented – however concessions must be added in Malta's case. It's not a one-size- fits-all policy. But the law must include all forms of contact on all digital services." Sansone says that while some jobs must include a disturbance allowance, since con- tacting employees outside of hours is una- voidable in certain jobs, the law must set out clear parameters, such as while being on holiday, at dinner time, when the em- ployer must not expect the employee to re- spond to phone calls, messages and emails. "To give an example of what can be im- plemented: I know of one business which had a system that when someone is on holiday – their emails were automatically diverted to someone else within the office who was working. That way, the person was able to take a break, without worrying that emails may go unanswered… So while flexible hours are the future, the right to disconnect doesn't have to undermine the concept." R2D: Status in Malta While the R2D has been debated by social partners in Malta, no consensus is emerg- ing on how to address the issue. Since 2017, the R2D has been discussed sparingly by both employers and unions in Malta. For example, in October 2019, the tripartite Malta-EU Steering and Action Commit- tee (MEUSAC) held a conference on the subject (MEUSAC, 2019). The Malta Em- ployers Association also dedicated a TV programme on the subject on national TV and the issue has also been discussed by the General Workers Union and the Malta Union of Teachers. MEA and the Chamber of SMEs are calling for flexibility rather than a one-size-fits-all solution. Likewise, the confederation Forum Unions Maltin (FORUM), argues against a one-size-fits- all and are calling for tailor made solutions within specific work contexts. Unions like the GWU and UHM Voice of the Workers on the other hand favour legislation, whilst allowing room for ma- noeuvre in order to cater for the specifici- ties of different work contexts. The Con- federation of Malta Trade Unions (CMTU) considers that the R2D is not yet properly defined and is suggesting that first a com- mon definition is needed.