Is disconnecting after work a human right? Since Covid-19, remote working has made flexible hours increasingly common, but now employees feel pressured to always be online. Britain is set to draw the line of balance by introducing the “right to disconnect” to a host of other workers’ rights. But the question is: Does one size fit all?

While some businesses inherently require employees to be on-call to respond to client needs, this shouldn’t be the norm. These include health and emergency services, financial firms, and tech companies. Those employees usually accept the idea that being contactable outside of working hours is a part of the job or is justified by the pay, according to the Financial Times.

The movement is catching on: Other countries have also started adopting restrictions to prevent employers from taking advantage of out-of-hours communications and requests. Portugal set a fine of EUR 10k for any company made up of over 10 people contacting employees after their normal hours unless there is an emergency. France’s droit à la déconnexion gives employees the right to not respond to employers until their working hours start without any repercussions. Belgium and Ireland are now expecting employers to set policies addressing out-of-hour communication.

Brainwaves can now be tracked and turned into data. And like all other data, it’s being bought and sold, CNBC reports. Wearable consumer tech — like sleep masks and headbands that monitor brain activity — has been capturing our neural data, with few legal protections in place for its users.

The concern? Tech companies are diving into this space, with giants like Neuralink and Apple making strides in brain-sensing technologies. The market for these devices is booming, with predictions that it will double in size over the next few years. Without clear regulations, companies can commodify brain data, potentially tracking not just your browsing history but how your brain reacts to the things you view.

Enter Colorado, USA, the first state to pass a law aimed at protecting neural data. Under the Colorado Consumer Protection Act, the state has expanded the definition of sensitive data to include biological information, covering everything from brainwaves to genetic traits. The law focuses on wearable tech, which falls outside of strict medical privacy protections like HIPAA, despite collecting neural data through everyday consumer devices.

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