Sunday saw the activation of the new "right to disconnect" law in France, a law that means workers are not obligated to read or send work-related emails outside of office hours.

Under the new law, companies of 50 or more people are now obliged to negotiate with workers' guidelines that set when employees are not required to read or answer work-related emails. If the two sides can't come to an agreement, the company must publish a charter that specifically outlines what is expected of workers outside of work hours.

Protecting workers

The thinking behind the law is to lower stress and burnout among workers, though France has a famously short 35-hour work week.

Socialist MP Benoit Hamon, "Employees physically leave the office, but they do not leave their work. They remain attached by a kind of electronic leash — like a dog."

Studies have been used to back the law, including one from French research group Eleas that showed over a third of French workers used smart phones to work outside of usual office hours, while 60 percent supported such a law to make clear what their rights were.

NPR also notes a pair of studies, one from the University of British Columbia that found that workers who checked email only three times a day were less stressed and one from Colorado State University which found that workers who expected having to answer work after office hours had increased stress.

Larger labor reform

While the "right to disconnect" seems designed to favor workers, it's part of larger labor reform that French President Francois Hollande's government passed in 2016 that actually gave companies more power and prompted large protests from workers.

Hollande also faced criticism for using executive powers to push through the reform without it being subjected to a parliamentary vote.

Demonstrators protest after the French government made use of the constitution's Article 49-3 allowing them to bypass parliament to force through a controversial labour reform bill. Image: Julien Pitinome/NurPhoto/Sipa USA

In addition to the "right to disconnect," the new labor laws make it easier for companies to hire and fire workers, allow companies to negotiate with unions for work weeks that are longer than the standardized 35 hours, and afford more flexibility for companies to negotiate leave and vacation time.

The government hopes the measures will make France more competitive by encouraging hiring and investment. Unions say it damages hard-won workers' rights.

Conservative critics, meanwhile, say the changes are too modest to invigorate the French economy, which has lagged behind those of Germany and other European nations over the past few years.

Additional reporting by the Associated Press