Digital disconnection and the working day: analysis of the need to regulate limits on availability to work in virtual environments

Abstract

The accelerated expansion of telework in Ecuador, intensified by the COVID-19 pandemic, has transformed labor dynamics and blurred the traditional boundaries of the working day, generating permanent digital availability that affects workers’ right to rest, health, and personal life. Although the Constitution of the Republic of Ecuador recognizes decent work, leisure time, and the comprehensive protection of workers, and the Labor Code establishes limits on working hours, the legal system lacks an explicit regulation of the right to digital disconnection. The objective of this study was to analyze the legal and social need to regulate limits on labor availability in virtual environments in Ecuador, based on a normative, doctrinal, and comparative examination. The research adopted a qualitative approach with a descriptive-analytical design, based on documentary analysis of national legislation, international human rights instruments, relevant jurisprudence, and comparative legislative experiences, particularly from European law. The results show that the absence of a specific regulation has fostered practices of labor hyperconnectivity that violate fundamental rights such as privacy, physical and mental health, and rest, while also deepening power imbalances in employer–employee relationships and generating legal uncertainty. It is concluded that the lack of regulation constitutes a normative gap incompatible with the constitutional principles of human dignity, social justice, and equality; therefore, incorporating the right to digital disconnection into Ecuadorian labor legislation is essential to guarantee decent and sustainable working hours in virtual work environments.