Promise to get more SA workers in line to decline
Government staff still expected to answer calls at the dinner table could soon hit decline, two years after the private sector was given protection to unplug. But high earners are still in chats.
Emails at dinner and calls on your day off are still the norm for most council and government staff, one worker says, despite federal protections for the right to disconnect being introduced in 2024.
The Labor government has committed to legislating the “right to disconnect” for these workers if it’s re-elected, aligning government and council workplaces with the private sector, Deputy Premier Kyam Maher said. It would protect workers earning under $150,000 per year from being penalised for refusing to respond to unreasonable out-of-hours contact.
“For a long time, if you work for a council or the state public sector, you’re kind of expected to be on all the time,” Sarah – whose last name has been removed for privacy reasons – says.
“It was like our time didn’t belong to us once we left the office.
“Most workers in Australia already had these protections for over a year, but we’ve been left behind.”
Sarah works in community wellbeing for one of SA’s 68 councils.
Each council has its own enterprise bargaining agreements with staff and only some currently incorporate the right to disconnect, according to SA Unions.
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The right to disconnect has been in place for medium and large Australian organisations since August 2024, and it was extended to include 5.4 million Australians working for small businesses in 2025.
It means staff can refuse contact about work – such as emails, texts or calls – outside work hours, unless that refusal could be considered “unreasonable”.
The “unreasonable” test must consider factors including urgency, how the contact is made and the level of disruption it causes, according to the Fair Work Commission.
For example, a council’s landscape architect could decline general gardening questions out of hours, but if there was a multi-million-dollar water leak emergency, it could pass the test, given the urgency and workplace risk.
SA Unions secretary Dale Beasley says the promised reforms were “a massive win” and something unions have been pushing for years.
“This isn’t just about a change in the law; it is about respect,” Beasley said.
“By winning the Right to Disconnect, workers will win back their time, their mental health, and their right to a life outside of the office.
“This reform recognises that whether you work in a local library or delivering public health or education services, you deserve the same rights as every other Australian worker.”
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Deputy Premier Kyam Maher said his government would bring the public sector and local government into line with the recent commonwealth changes.
“The ‘right to disconnect’ ensures workers cannot be discriminated against for not responding to unreasonable out-of-hours contact,” he said.
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