Portugal makes it illegal for your boss to text you after work

Portugal makes it illegal for your boss to text you after work. Portugal’s new remote working law is said to be a game-changer.

The new law hopes to bring a healthier work-life balance to remote workers. Portugal has already approved the new labour law.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the number of people working from home has increased dramatically. According to Portugal’s ruling Socialist Party, the new rules were approved on Friday in response to the change in working practices.

This means that employees will receive help from their employers to pay for remote working expenses. Remote working means higher electricity bills and potentially increased Internet bills too. Companies could be fined if they text or contact workers outside their normal office hours.

The new rules though will not apply to small companies that have less than 10 employees. Companies will also not be allowed to monitor remote workers as they work from home.

MPs in Portugal rejected the “right to disconnect” proposal. The proposal had suggested that employees should be able to turn off work-related messages and devices outside of standard office hours.

Ana Mendes Godinho, Portugal’s Minister of Labour and Social Security recently said: “The pandemic has accelerated the need to regulate what needs to be regulated,”

“Telework can be a ‘game changer’ if we profit from the advantages and reduce the disadvantages”.

The Minister also hopes that remote working will bring digital nomads to the country. She commented: “We consider Portugal one of the best places in the world for these digital nomads and remote workers to choose to live in, we want to attract them to Portugal.”

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