Right to disconnect
I'm a sales assistant in a sports shop. My boss has an unpleasant tendency to contact me during my holidays or my holiday to ask me questions about just about everything... Am I at risk if I don't check her messages? I've heard of a "right to disconnect". How exactly do I enforce this?
Raoul
The "right" to which you refer does not exist specifically as such in the law, but is one of the aspects of the right to protection of personality.
Swiss Constitution
This derives from various fundamental rights enshrined in the Swiss Constitution, in particular the right to personal freedom enshrined in Article 10 and the right to respect for human dignity guaranteed by Article 7 of our country's most important legal text.
Article 21A of the Geneva Constitution also enshrines a right to digital integrity.
Article 328 CO
In the context of an employment contract, the right to privacy is protected by Article 328 of the Swiss Code of Obligations (CO), which essentially states that the employer must protect and respect the employee's privacy during the employment relationship.
Swiss Federal Supreme Court
In a recent Geneva case decided by the Federal Court (ruling 1C_316/2024 of 6 February 2025), a policewoman complained that her employer had demanded that she check her text messages even on her days off. In her view, this constituted a breach of personal privacy and an attack on her health; she also claimed a "right to disconnect".
Fundamental rights
The cantonal judges, followed by the federal judges, considered that the very nature of the obligation to consult a text message during a rest period was not very restrictive, that it certainly did not constitute a restriction of a fundamental right of the police officer in view of the commitments he had made in choosing this position, since his mission is to be at the service of the population and to ensure a response to citizens twenty-four hours a day and seven days a week, and that the duty hours were established to meet such criteria. They also considered that it was doubtful whether the obligation to consult one's work telephone in the event of an alert could constitute an infringement of fundamental rights.
Right to disconnect
In your case, however, you shouldn't fear for your job, since the very nature of your profession means that you can't be contacted at all times, especially for questions that your boss seems to be able to answer on her own with a minimum of organisation. You can therefore make the most of your holidays, the main purpose of which is to rest and switch off your phone if you wish! If your employer reproaches you for this, or even takes unacceptable measures against you, consult your union or your lawyer straight away!
