Like working from home? In Australia, it could become the law
In some places, the next battle in the war over remote work may be fought in legislatures, not HR departments. The United Kingdom, Ireland, and New Zealand have already passed laws giving workers the right to request remote work and to have the request considered fairly by their employers. Canada extends similar rights to federal employees. The European Union does so for parents or caregivers of…
The Australian state of Victoria is contemplating a potential legal shift that would grant employees the right to work remotely two days a week. Currently, only a few countries such as the UK, Ireland, New Zealand, Canada, and the European Union have enacted laws that allow workers to request remote work and have employers consider these requests.
Victoria’s proposed legislation aims to move beyond simply granting permission to request remote work, instead making it a right that employers must justify denying. If passed, this would represent a major step forward in ensuring workplace flexibility.
However, the proposal is met with resistance. Business groups argue it infringes on employers’ ability to manage their workplaces, while critics question whether the state has the constitutional power to mandate such a policy. The debate has already become contentious, highlighting the growing divide between individual companies and governments regarding where work should take place.
Experts suggest that in the U.S., this issue is unlikely to be addressed soon. The country's "at-will" employment laws, allowing employers to fire workers without cause, and the lack of widespread labor protections like paid leave, make enacting remote work legislation a lower priority for legislators.
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