Boss demands 24/7 "urgent" access to employee, interrupting the employee's evenings and weekends with tasks that could have waited: 'If I’m not answering emails at 10PM, I’ll wake up to passive aggressive messages'

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  via Bernd 📷 Dittrich

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• Today, in 2025, undoubtedly, most workers would prefer to have some type of flexibility in their working arrangements, with a few exceptions, except among older members of the workforce.

  But when you see that notification from your employer pop up on your phone after 8 pm, after you've moved from working at your dining table to the couch, you'll find yourself wishing that you existed in a time when your boss wouldn't have a hope in the world of reaching you after you walked out the office doors.

  As someone who works remotely, I know this pain all too well. While there are certainly many benefits to working from home, there is a complete lack of separation between the stages of your day. This is especially difficult on days when you're struggling to find motivation or dealing with other distractions in your home or your personal life. You'll find yourself with some days where you wish you could just get out of the house, complete your work, and then come home and set it all aside. 

• "I'm not on call, and my contract doesn't say anything about nights or weekends."

  
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  via Jonas Leupe

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• For this employee, their inability to escape their boss's expectations. And for their boss, every little thing is life or death, with exaggerated emergencies popping into their head like notifications at all hours of the night. As a result, their Employees find themselves under constant pressure to be available 24/7, meaning that even their personal time is treated as if they are on call without any sort of on-call compensation. 

  Without a doubt, this worker needs to set clear boundaries with their boss, or else their inability to switch off will soon lead them to burnout. A boundary isn't about being difficult, it's about communicating clearly—for your own sanity. If your boss is a cortisol-fatigued hothead, which, let's face it, they probably are in this situation, you need to navigate carefully and remain calm and level-headed yourself. Don't give them any reaction that they can jump down your throat about and use against you. Clearly communicate a reason that they can't refute to back up your stance. Then restate clearly as required and stay consistent with sticking to the boundary you have set. Offer solutions as alternatives to being at their beck and call 24/7, like shared task trackers. 

  And, as always, at any point in this process, it's always good to start establishing a written record.

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  via Phil Desforges

  _{The image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.}

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