France is debating a radical new labour law

THAT’S it, we’re moving to Paris. Not only do they have a 35-hour work week, but the French have come up with a way to protect workers’ personal lives.

WE ALL know that checking our phones after hours is a sure-fire way to ramp up stress levels and ruin our sleep.

But switching off can be tough, especially if your workplace has a culture that rewards being available around the clock.

That’s the thinking behind new legislation being considered in France, which would enshrine the so-called “right to disconnect” in law.

French Labour Minister Myriam El Khomri is due to present a package of reforms in coming weeks, among them a law that would give workers a right to switch off their smartphone as soon as they leave the office.

That means you can put your feet up and watch Netflix without the interruption of emails, phone calls or instant messages — sounds pretty good.

While the reforms have the wider aim of loosening the strike-prone country’s notoriously tough labour regulations, Ms El Khomri appears to have taken heed of concerns about the risk of burnout when employees are digitally connected.

2001 : Scene from 2001 film "Amelie" shot on location at Cafe des Deux Moulins in Montmartre, Paris, 08/04. France / Restaurant Travel

Bruno Mettling, the director general of mobile phone company Orange, told Europe 1 last year that while technology had the power to “transform and improve work life”, it posed a risk.

“One of the biggest risks is the balance of personal and working life as related to this constant connectivity,” Mr Mettling said.

“No employee should criticised for not having been here after work hours ... Professionals who find the right balance between private and work life perform far better in their job than those who arrive shattered.”

The issue has been on the political agenda in France, which has a 35-hour work week, for the past two years.

Le Mondereported in 2014 that a study found millions of French workers to be at risk of burnout due to being digitally connected.

While the “right to disconnect” law will no doubt appeal to them, they may not be so keen on some of the other proposed reforms — like allowing companies to negotiate longer hours and pay less overtime.

But before you book that plane ticket, it’s worth remembering that the French economy is not so hot, with a unemployment rate of 10.6 per cent.

Originally published as France is debating a radical new labour law