key: cord-0700534-42b0symb authors: nan title: Editorial Working anywhere and anytime in the 24-h society: impact on the world of work date: 2021-01-03 journal: Ind Health DOI: 10.2486/indhealth.59_100 sha: 1fa511a4e91252a6078852dabc331e5314dfe4ea doc_id: 700534 cord_uid: 42b0symb nan ducing people who complain on lack of time 5) . Changes in work arrangements have also led to the intensification of flexible work in its various forms (e.g. part-time work, temporary work, irregular working times, flexible working hours and location, compressed work weeks, precarious employment), which, often do not allow freedom of choice for the workers. The reduced job security and long working hours are some of the consequences for nowadays employees 6) . Thus, the long hours and the constant availability of workers in relation to customers and superiors are part of the current framework in several sectors 7) . This situation is expressed in the tendency to the fast pace of work 8) and the increase in daily and weekly work hours observed in several countries 9) . In this context, people may not be at the workplace, but it is expected that they will always be "available". In several professions work is no longer restricted to the professional physical space, since one can work at any time anywhere 7) , leading to the attenuation of the limits between the private sphere and professional life 10) . This situation occurs at the expense of free time, which is essential to health behaviors and recovery in relation to work itself. Such structural changes in space-time relations and in the perception of work take place in a context of strong neoliberal influence that has strongly contributed to increase work precariousness worldwide 11) . When analyzing the so-called "telework" in terms of the link with the company, Reseda 12) states: When having the availability to carry out his activity anywhere, as long as connected by computer, the employee will be linked to the company in a virtual way, being possible, therefore, a greater availability to the employer, since whenever he is using the information technology you may be "linked" to the company. In other words, the hierarchical superior will also leave the physical limits of the company and enter other areas of his subordinate's life. In fact, most empirical studies show that, despite the popularity of flexibility as to work hours, telework tends to be associated with long work hours 13) . Comparison on work hours per week considering total telework, partial Industrial Health 2021, 59, 1-3 telework and no telework shows that a higher percentage of total teleworkers (24%) and partial teleworkers (15%) reported more than 45 working hours a week, compared to the no telework group (10%) 7) . The COVID-19 pandemic required companies to adjust to the recommendation of social distance, imposing telework for groups of workers who had to adapt their routines to this new condition. In Europe, 4 out of 10 employees started working at home during the pandemic 14) , which made teleworking more visible with work hours being compulsorily replaced by productivity targets. Health risks associated with informal employment are highlighted by Fujishiro 15) in a recent editorial by Industrial Health. Those risks may have worsened due to the current global health and economic crisis derived from COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, precarious work, with a large number of informal workers, temporary/on-demand jobs, job insecurity and limited protection are present in the current social scenario and need to be managed 16) . In several countries, workers have not social protection, e.g., not having the right to paid leave during a period of illness related or not to work conditions. Vulnerable workers not covered by labor laws, such as self-employed professionals, digital platform workers undergo an increased number of hours worked to guarantee minimum income. In the case of flexible work and telework, it is desirable that teleworkers have guaranteed rights, benefits and adequate working conditions similar to those of workers working on the employer's premises 7) . It is not by chance that the debate on precarious work takes place in the midst of a neoliberal context focused on the growing demand for results, which substantially affects the organization of work. The greater competition in virtually all economic sectors (industry, production, trade and services) brought by neoliberalism has strongly affected many workplaces. Autonomy, freedom and self-control can become contradictory 16) . External control has become internal, since information and communication technology equipment have the ability to control each click, as a symbolic invasion. On the other hand, today's society is still being challenged to deal with aspects of this global digital transformation, which can lead to changes in labor relations, with the unwanted deregulation that can lead to increased social inequality 17) . The United Nations (UN) has proposed a 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which includes among its goals "promoting sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all" 18) . Efforts need to be made in this context of the 2020's in favor of actions such as the regulation of working and non-working times, the right to disconnect, the greater formalization of employment relationships, and the full protection of workers in order to build a society that offers better living conditions. The twenty-four-hour society: understanding human limits in a world that never stops 0 1 9 ) International consensus statements on non-standard working time arrangements and occupational health and safety World internet usage and population statistics Job demands in a changing world of work: impact on workers' health and performance and implications for research and practice Social acceleration. A new theory of modernity Job demands in a changing world of work: impact on workers' health and performance and implications for research and practice Working anytime, anywhere: The effects on the world of work. European Union and the International Labour Office Time scarcity: another health inequality? Research paper 6. ILO Future of work research paper series. International Labor Office After-hours availability expectations, work-related smartphone use during leisure, and psychological detachment: the moderating role of boundary control Neoliberal capitalism and precarious work. Ethnographies of accommodation and resistance O direito à desconexão: uma realidade no teletrabalho. Revista Ltr: legislação do trabalho 71 Teleworking during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. A practical guide Living, working and COVID-19, COVID-19 series. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union Informal employment as a frontier of occupational safety and health research O privilégio da servidão. O novo proletariado de serviços na era digital South American Expert Roundtable: increasing adaptive governance capacity for coping with unintended side effects of digital transformation International Labour Organization (2020) Decent work and the 2030 agenda for sustainable development