The report follows the 2021 publication when information on applying the right to disconnect at the company level still needed to be available. In 2022, the European cross-industry social partners began negotiations on a possible framework agreement on telework and the right to disconnect, which were ongoing at the time of the writing of the current report (June 2023).

The report is based on a 2023 survey of employees and HR managers in four countries: Belgium, France, Italy and Spain.  The report assesses the impact of company policies on employees' connection hours, working time, work-life balance, health and well-being, and overall workplace satisfaction.

The results show that remote workers are more likely to work longer than contractually required. Eight out of ten workers in companies with and those without a right to disconnect policy regularly receive work-related communication outside working hours.

The research also shows that satisfied workers with a better work-life balance are primarily employed in companies with a right-to-disconnect policy.

Significantly, among the seven companies interviewed that currently do not have a right to disconnect policy, the four HR managers believe that formulating such a policy in the future would benefit the company. Two are already working on or planning to implement actions to improve employees' right to disconnect.

The graph below shows the evaluation of the impact of disconnection policies in the various countries, which is considered positive in Spain (76 percent), followed by France (74 percent), Italy (70 percent), and Belgium (69 percent).

In conclusion, although the right to disconnect in the workplace does not seem to affect the possibility of contacting workers outside working hours, the report shows that right-to-disconnect policies positively affect work–life balance, health and well-being, and overall job satisfaction.

Nontheless, other measures must accompany them, including awareness raising, training, and effective monitoring systems.