Switched-on ABC staff seeking right to switch off

ABC staff should have the ‘right to disconnect’ from phone, email and other messaging ser­vices.

ABC staff should have the “right to disconnect” from phone, email and other messaging ser­vices, the public sector union says.

The Commonwealth Public Sector Union is pushing for staff to turn off digital technology “when at home or out-of-office” as the public broadcaster moves more aggressively into digital media services.

A document obtained by The Australian reveals that the new ABC enterprise agreement is also trying to achieve a better work-life balance, with a rise in penalty allowances for staff who start work between 2am and 4am.

“Both staff and management know the ABC is increasingly a 24-hour workplace,” a joint agreement with the journalists union said.

The claim, lodged with ABC management yesterday, comes one week after outgoing ABC boss Mark Scott defended ­increased investment in digital services as necessary to keep the public broadcaster relevant to contemporary audiences.