In the wake of the sudden rise in Covid-19 cases, and PM Shinzo Abe’s announcement on 07 April that Japan was entering a state of emergency, twice as many businesses as before have been putting telework arrangements in place. Notwithstanding the increase, hesitancy remains in undertaking what is still an uncommon form of working arrangement in Japan.
Results from a survey of 25,000 office workers by the Persol Research think tank in conjunction with Consulting Co. show that in spite of both PM Shinzo Abe’s announcement on 07 April that Japan was entering a state of emergency, and the alarming rise in the number of Covid-19 cases (>10,700 cases as of 19 April, and Asia’s third highest after China and India), 60% of Tokyo’s workers are still physically going to work. The results show that as of mid-April and when extrapolated nationwide, the country’s teleworking rate has doubled to 26.9%, as compared with March (13.2%).
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