Accumulated Messages and Group Chats... Increasing Contact Fatigue Among Office Workers
Some Local Governments Have Established Ordinances, but Legalization Is Still Pending
Experts Say "It Is Necessary to Set Personal Standards for Responding to Contacts"
Comedian Yoo Jae-suk revealed that he does not use messengers due to communication fatigue. Photo by YouTube channel 'How Do You Play?'.
[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] As non-face-to-face activities increase, communicating with acquaintances as well as conducting work through messengers like KakaoTalk (KakaoTalk) has become routine, leading many to complain of fatigue. While the convenience of rapid information delivery is undeniable, the mandatory use of messengers even in the workplace has given rise to the term "KakaoTalk hell."
Recently, comedian Yoo Jae-seok made headlines by revealing that he did not install KakaoTalk at all due to stress caused by constant contact. On the MBC variety show "How Do You Play?" aired on the 8th, Yoo Jae-seok said, "These days, there are so many KakaoTalk messages that I feel fatigued from the contact. That’s why I don’t sign up."
Singer Lee Mi-joo, who appeared on the show with him, complained about the inconvenience Yoo Jae-seok faced by not being part of group chats and suggested, "You can set the (KakaoTalk) notifications to silent. I’ll do it for you. Try it for a month." However, Yoo Jae-seok declined, saying, "If I sign up for that (KakaoTalk), won’t I get too many messages?" and added, "I really hate the constant KakaoTalk notifications."
Many people complain of fatigue as communicating through messengers has become routine even when doing work. Photo by Getty Images Bank
Many people feel stressed and fatigued due to the excessive number of messages they receive. Especially office workers who communicate all work-related matters through group chats often feel that their work and personal life are not separated.
Choi, a worker in his 30s, said, "Besides the group chat with all team members, group chats are continuously created for different fields or ranks according to the instructions. These group chats get mixed with conversations with acquaintances, so sometimes it’s confusing and chaotic to tell what is what." He added, "Because communication is so easy, work instructions often come right before or after leaving work, and many messages that are not urgent notices also arrive after work."
Some office workers say they feel like they are working even during their rest time because of messengers. Kim (28) said, "I can turn off notifications and not check messages that come outside working hours, but when there’s an indicator that a message has arrived, I feel compelled to check it." He confessed, "It’s exhausting to check hundreds of messages on days off like annual leave. I don’t want to look, but I have no choice because there might be an important notice."
As a result, some European countries have already enacted laws prohibiting contact via phone calls, texts, or internal messengers after work hours. France implemented the so-called "Log Off Law" on January 1, 2017, requiring compensation for contact outside working hours.
In South Korea, former Democratic Party lawmaker Shin Kyung-min and others attempted to legislate the "right not to be connected" through the "KakaoTalk Ban Law" in June 2016, but it was scrapped amid backlash over excessive regulation. However, some local governments have enacted ordinances to guarantee this right. Gwangmyeong City in Gyeonggi Province announced the "Declaration on Employee Human Rights Protection" in July 2017, the first local government in the country to include a ban on work instructions after hours. Seoul City also included the right not to be connected in the revised "Seoul Metropolitan Government Local Public Officials Service Ordinance" in September of the same year.
Experts suggest setting personal standards for responding to contact. Professor Lee Dong-gwi of Yonsei University’s Department of Psychology said, "We call this the hyper-connected era. In fact, modern people find it difficult to escape messages in group chats." He added, "The best solution is for companies not to contact employees via KakaoTalk outside working hours and to establish a culture that respects rest time, but since work environments and conditions differ, it is practically difficult to apply this uniformly."
Professor Lee continued, "However, since one cannot remain defenseless under stress forever, it is necessary to set personal standards for appropriately responding to contact. Sometimes there is pressure to check messages as soon as notifications appear, but if it is outside working hours, one should not respond and create uninterrupted time by separating work and rest. If there is contact that must be responded to, it is better to reply briefly and quickly to block stress." He also added, "Some countries have enacted laws banning messenger use after work, and we should consider such legislation in the future."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
