France has just passed a law that forbids companies of 50 people or more from sending emails after work hours. Dubbed the “right to disconnect” amendment, the law is based on ideas that the work day is becoming too stressful, and due to technology and the Internet, this stress is no longer left behind at the office once employees go home.
I know for a fact that I have trouble “switching off.” My phone is the first thing I see in the morning, the last thing I see at night – I even take it to the toilet. And don’t lie to me, I know you do it too. I hate not having any notifications, but when I do, I don’t feel like dealing with them.
A question to consider is, are we more stressed because we have more to do, or are we simply too inefficient at doing the work we have because we’re constantly distracted by technology? I’ve checked my phone 3 times already whilst writing this post.
I think that the “always on” nature of how we live in the 21st century has definitely affect us in some way. However, it is too soon to tell whether this has significantly affected our productivity or stress levels for better or for worse.