The proposed law is sponsored by Councilman Rafael Espinal Jr., D-Brooklyn. And it wouldn't forbid employers from sending those messages to workers, or stop workers from responding to them if they chose to—it would, however, give employees the right to ignore such messages until they were back on the clock.

"So many of us are glued to our smartphones and our computers, it's important to understand that we don't have to feel as if our work has to spill into our personal lives," Espinal is quoted saying in the report. And he has a point; according to a 2015 report by the New York City comptroller, NYC workers already spend an average of almost 50 hours a week working or commuting—and that doesn't count time spent answering e-mails at home.

Should the legislation pass, bosses will find it costs them to ignore it; they'll face a $250 fine every time they require an employee to access electronic communications outside of standard working hours. And if they discipline a worker for not responding, it'll cost them a $500 fine, plus all lost wages and benefits. But if they dare to fire a worker for failing to access off-hours messages, the fine would rise to $2,500 and the worker could be eligible for reinstatement. In addition, there could also be additional civil penalties.

"If employees were given a legal 'right to disconnect' this may encourage more employers to moderate their expectations of employees and allow them to reestablish a boundary between home and work," Stephen Bevan, head of HR research development at the Institute for Employment Studies, is quoted saying to Newsweek.

New York could be the first in the U.S. to pass such a law, but workers in such countries as France, Germany, Italy and the Philippines already have that right. And some companies put such a policy in place on their own—not U.S.-based companies, naturally, but German and French corporations have done so.