Is Germany Planning to Ban Work Emails After 6 P.M.?

The advent of email greatly simplified workplace
communication. It made possible increased workplace flexibility,
and a plethora of different workplace arrangements for employers
and employees. Internet capable smartphones have only increased
this flexibility, but not everyone is happy about it.

European labor unions, in particular, have raised concerns about
the time spent by employees answering work emails outside of
traditional working hours. This has prompted the German government
to commission a study assessing the economic and psychological cost
of workplace stress, with possible legislation to follow.

From
The Huffington Post:

Last month, German Labor Minister Andrea Nahles commissioned a
study to assess the psychological and economic effects of
work-related stress. The findings, slated to be released in 2016,
are expected to generate legislation that would ban employers from
contacting workers after office hours.

It is far too early to know for certain what any proposed
legislation will look like, and there is considerable scepticism in
Germany about the kind of blanket restrictions that have been
mooted, as the
The Guardian reports:

It remains controversial even in Social Democrat circles, and a
number of politicians from Angela Merkel’s party have voiced
opposition. “What are plumbers meant to do when you’ve got a burst
pipe after 6pm?” asked the CDU politician Michael Fuchs.

However, given that Nahles has
previously spoken favorably about restrictions on workplace
email contact, a blanket ban on after hours email contact is at
least a possibility.

If the German government does institute such a ban, it could
have potentially devastating consequences for one of Europe’s few
remaining economic powerhouses.

Germany will find it increasingly difficult to bail out their
underperforming neighbours if their productivity is constrained by
arbitrary rules mandating increasingly outdated work
arrangements.

Such legislation is also unnecessary. If after hours email
contact is a problem for employees, then it ought to be dealt with
in negotiations between them—or their chosen union
representatives—and their employers.

In fact, this is already beginning to happen, as
The Guardian reports:

Some large companies, such as Daimler and Volkswagen, have
already adopted rules to limit work-related stress. Last month,
Daimler allowed about 100,000 workers to delete emails they
received while on vacation. In 2011, Volkswagen agreed to stop its
BlackBerry servers from sending emails after working hours.

Germany has managed to retain a healthy manufacturing industry
in an increasingly globalized world. Banning after work email
contact with employees will only burden their economy with with
rigid restrictions on working arrangements. It will reduce
flexibility and harm prosperity in the long run.