Work email ban after hours in New York City may become law
Fed up with having to check job-related email after hours? Think there ought to be a law?
Legislation in New York City would make it illegal for employees to access work-related email outside their regular work schedules.
Rafael Espinal, representing the 37th District in New York City, is set to introduce a bill at the City Council meeting on Thursday to give New Yorkers the right to disconnect.
“This is a serious law, and I think that in the form that it is right now, I can’t imagine that it’s going to pass, but stranger things have happened,” Kyle Reyes, The Silent Partner Marketing CEO, said during an interview on FOX Business’ “Risk & Reward” on Monday.
Work-life balance is unique to the individual and shouldn’t be legislated, according to Reyes.
“To pass legislation saying, ‘You can’t force your employees to check emails after hours,’ there are no exemptions in the way it’s written right now that we can see that provided exemptions for police or for medical professionals,” he said.
Reyes said New York City has had a long-standing history of making mistakes when passing “knee-jerk” legislation and cited the city’s efforts to limit the number of rounds in magazines without considering the impact on the police department.
“They had to go back to the drawing board when all of a sudden, the police department said, ‘Hey, we have more than seven rounds in a magazine,’ ” Reyes said.
Reyes, whose marketing consulting firm is based in Connecticut, said the New York City email legislation would disenfranchise workers who are trying to work harder and earn a promotion.
“Anytime the government puts its hand in a business and takes away from the ability for an employee to outshine and outperform and show their own skills and abilities, we’re making a mistake,” he said.