Leaving the work life at work?

France took a big step to change their work culture.  The "Right to Disconnect" law recently went into effect.

That meant employees are no longer obligated to deal with work e-mails once they leave the office.

Would a law like that fly in the U.S.?

The digital age creates an endless workday of commercial possibility for employers, and a constant line of communication for employees with their bosses.

"I remember one time I was on vacation and I got a text from my boss. I was like ‘do I really have to answer this?’” said one person.

"If I do decide to ignore the phone call, I can't post anything on Instagram that night," said another.

On January 1, France set that precedent for its citizens. A new law went into effect in that country which allowed employees to ignore work emails after regular business hours.

Barry Drexler: "In theory, it may be a good idea to protect people's personal lives, but in practice it could be problematic,” said Barry Drexler, President of Drexler Consulting.

Drexler spent thirty years in corporate human resources and believes an economy increases the benefits of time away from work if it defines and respects those personal-hours on an employer-to-employer basis instead of via an overarching federal standard like France's "Right to Disconnect" law.

"When an employee feels like the employer has their best interest in mind and the employer is concerned for them, they're more likely to be concerned for the employer,” he said.

"You feel indebted to your employer sometimes. You have this love-hate relationship with them,” said another bystander.

People often feel inclined to respond to that weekend text, call, email, or instant message from our professional lives --- even more so, the less often it comes with repercussions to our personal ones.