Kerala’s Right to Disconnect Bill 2025: India’s First Step Towards Digital Labour Reform
- NLR Journal
- Nov 16
- 1 min read
By Kartikey Mishra, LL.M., NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad.
Abstract
In the age of pervasive digital communication, the boundaries between work and personal life have increasingly dissolved. The Kerala Right to Disconnect Bill 2025, introduced as a Private Member’s Bill by Dr. N. Jayaraj, seeks to legally recognise an employee’s entitlement to disengage from work-related communications beyond prescribed working hours without facing retaliation. This legislation represents India’s first serious attempt to confront the “always-on” culture that has been linked to declining mental health, burnout, and diminished family life. Globally, the right to disconnect has emerged as an essential labour right, closely tied to the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goals 3, 5, and 8, on health, gender equality, and decent work respectively. Research underscores that continuous digital connectivity erodes worker autonomy, rest, and privacy, leading to measurable increases in occupational stress and emotional exhaustion. France, Spain, Belgium, and several Latin American nations have already adopted statutory frameworks regulating after-hours communication. This paper situates the Kerala initiative within that international trajectory, exploring its conceptual foundations, constitutional justifications, and policy implications. It argues that the Bill symbolises a necessary shift towards digital labour reform and the recognition of rest as an integral component of human dignity under Article 21 of the Constitution of India.
