SGI Europe discusses telework and right to disconnect at the high-level conference of the European Parliament and Commission

The European Commission and the European Parliament co-hosted a conference on the right to disconnect and telework on 15 March 2022. This event was part of the series of follow-up actions of the European Commission in response to the European Parliament’s Resolution on the right to disconnect. The aim of this conference was to provide a forum to present the perspectives of EU institutions, Member States, social partners and relevant stakeholders on this important issue. The event allowed to look into the trends and evolution of telework and the right to disconnect in the context of the COVID-19 crisis, the related opportunities and challenges as well as the various policy responses from different Member States.

SGI Europe participated in this event in a panel dedicated to the role of social partners’ agreements and social dialogue. SGI Europe highlighted on this occasion the importance of the autonomous agreement on telework signed in 2002 and the evolutions since its implementation 20 years ago. The panel also was the opportunity to present a forward-looking perspective on the implementation of the digitalisation agreement of 2020 which provides a framework for social partners at the national level to tackle the challenges linked to digitalisation including work organisation and the modalities of connecting and disconnecting.

The topics of the conference are closely linked to the ongoing negotiations of the EU social partners for their next work programme 2022-2024 which could tackle telework and the issue of disconnection.