The Government appears to have done a complete U-turn on workers’ “right to switch off outside work hours” as Ministers are expected to axe the policy in the coming weeks.
With 1 in 3 adults experiencing high or extreme levels of workplace stress last year, what does this means for employers trying to balance personnel wellbeing and profits?
The policy was central to Sir Keir Starmer’s manifesto promise of a “New Deal for Working People” aimed at strengthening employment rights.
By allowing workers the right to ignore work-related emails and calls outside office hours, the policy promised to ensure that “working from home does not become homes turning into 24/7 offices”.
The policy, inspired by working models employed in Ireland and Belgium, would have ensured that employees also had the right to refuse to take on extra work at the weekends – without repercussions or reprimand.
But not anymore. It appears that workers may soon be at their employer’s beck and call 24/7 to burn the candle at both ends.
“Responsible employers will recognise the risks involved in overworking and overwhelming their staff” explains Billi Cobley, our Senior Class Underwriter.
“The fact is that people need to rest and recharge in order to work efficiently and effectively. Forcing people to be available out of hours could have a significant impact on employee burnout and mental health. The consequences of stress and anxiety, absenteeism and presenteeism could result in disruptive workplace disputes and costly claims.”
The policy U turn appears to be the result of the Budget which placed an additional financial burden on employers in the form of the national insurance contributions hike on top of minimum wage increases.
Ministers are said to be making the change in a bid to boost business confidence and put money back in people’s pockets. But at what cost?
Juggling productivity, profits and presenteeism caused by burnout.
The Annual Burnout Report 2025 conducted by YouGov found that that 1 in 3 (34%) adults experienced high or extreme levels of pressure or stress – either ‘always’ or ‘often’ last year. Meanwhile, 9 in 10 (91%) experienced high pressure or stress at some point during 2024.[1]
Some of the reasons cited for this stress pandemic included having to regularly work unpaid overtime, taking on additional hours due to the increased cost of living, increased workload and fears of redundancy or job security.
Today, there is a pressing need for employers to embrace workplace policies and cultures that support employees’ mental health. However, ACAS reported that between September 2021 and May 2022, the words ‘stress’, ‘mental health’ and ‘depression’ appeared in more than 12,000 early conciliation or employment tribunal cases.[2]
The prevalence of stress and burnout in employment-related disputes is a real concern for HR and business owners. Employment legal protection can offer businesses some peace of mind and help reduce the financial burden in the event of a tribunal brought about by such issues.
It remains to be seen if the Governments’ policy U-turn backfires with a downturn in employee health and wellbeing and an upturn in costly employment tribunals.
March 2025
[1] https://mentalhealth-uk.org/blog/burnout-report-2025-reveals-generational-divide-in-levels-of-stress-and-work-absence/#:~:text=The%20survey%20of%204%2C418%20UK,with%2035%25%20the%20previous%20year.
[2] https://www.acas.org.uk/call-for-evidence-for-new-mental-health-and-wellbeing-plan-acas-response