The Right to Digital Disconnection in Spain: What Employers Must Know

A right, not just a wellness perk

In Spain, "switching off" after work is not just a wellness recommendation — it is a legal right. The right to digital disconnection (derecho a la desconexión digital) was introduced by Article 88 of the Ley Orgánica 3/2018 de Protección de Datos Personales y Garantía de los Derechos Digitales (LOPDGDD), published in the BOE on 6 December 2018.

Later, the Ley 10/2021 de trabajo a distancia (remote work law) reinforced this right specifically for remote and hybrid workers in its Article 18.

What Article 88 LOPDGDD actually says

Article 88 recognises that all workers — public and private — have the right to digital disconnection in order to guarantee, outside legal or agreed working hours, respect for:

• -Rest time.
• -Leave and holidays.
• -Personal and family privacy.

The article also requires employers to draft, after consultation with workers' representatives, an internal policy defining how the right will be exercised, and to carry out awareness and training actions for employees — with particular attention to remote and teleworking arrangements.

What Article 18 of Ley 10/2021 adds

For remote and hybrid workers, Article 18 of Ley 10/2021 specifies that the employer must:

• -Guarantee digital disconnection, which includes limiting the use of technological means of business communication during rest periods.
• -Ensure the right to rest, leave and vacations.
• -Organise work, including training, to respect this right.
• -Establish —in the company's internal policy— the means by which disconnection will be exercised.

In other words: a generic "please disconnect" email is not enough. The law expects a written, negotiated policy.

What a compliant policy typically covers

Based on guidance from AEPD and collective agreements signed after 2018, a robust disconnection policy usually addresses:

1. -Defined working hours — clear start and end times, including for flexible and remote work.
2. -Expected response windows — explicit statement that workers are not required to read or respond to messages outside those hours.
3. -Out-of-hours communication — when urgent contact is genuinely necessary, and how it is authorised.
4. -Meetings and calendar rules — no scheduling outside working hours, respect for holidays.
5. -Tool configuration — email footers, "do not disturb" defaults, automatic reply templates.
6. -Manager responsibilities — leaders explicitly expected to model disconnection.
7. -Training and awareness — regular reminders and onboarding for new hires.
8. -Enforcement mechanism — how workers can raise concerns safely.

Why this matters beyond compliance

Research on always-on work cultures is consistent: extended after-hours connectivity is associated with higher burnout, sleep disruption and lower recovery. A disconnection policy is not only a legal requirement, it is also a concrete burnout-prevention measure.

In a hybrid workforce, the boundary between "home" and "work" blurs by default. Without explicit rules, workers tend to extend hours — and managers, often unintentionally, reinforce it by sending late-night messages.

Common compliance gaps

• -Having a disconnection clause in the contract, but no actual policy.
• -A policy that was never negotiated with worker representatives.
• -No training or internal communication about the policy.
• -Managers who visibly ignore the rules.
• -No adaptation for remote workers.
• -No mechanism for workers to raise violations.

A starting checklist for HR

1. -Check whether your company has a written disconnection policy, and when it was last reviewed.
2. -Confirm that it was consulted with legal worker representation (where applicable).
3. -Review whether the policy addresses remote and hybrid work specifically.
4. -Audit manager communication patterns — are they setting a bad example?
5. -Include disconnection in the regular riesgos psicosociales assessment.
6. -Run awareness training at least annually.

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Harmony is being designed with the principles of rest, recovery and privacy at its core — helping teams in Spain and the EU respect the right to disconnect in practice, not just on paper. Join our waiting list to learn more.

Disclaimer: This article is informational and does not constitute legal advice. Consult your legal department or a labour lawyer for specific obligations.