As the world faces yet another crisis, why are leaders still resisting remote work?

"At 9pm, shops, restaurants and cafes go dark across the city of Cairo, where a stringent curfew has been imposed to mitigate the energy shock triggered by the conflict in the Gulf."

"Parts of Africa and Asia appear to be ahead of Europe in confronting resource scarcity. Many decisive measures have already been adopted: a mandatory work-from-home day in Egypt, an additional weekly day off in Sri Lanka, a four-day workweek for public-sector workers in the Philippines."

"The EU is now set to present a non-binding initiative promoting remote working as a way to ease the energy crisis by reducing commuting and office energy use."

"Despite firm recommendations and restrictions, the prevailing rhetoric is that these drastic times call for drastic - yet temporary - measures, and once the current crisis blows over, everything will go right back to normal."

Cairo has implemented a curfew at 9pm to manage energy shortages caused by the Gulf conflict, with reports of petrol stations running dry. Countries in Africa and Asia are taking proactive measures, such as mandatory work-from-home days and reduced workweeks. Although Europe faces less acute supply constraints, EU energy chief Dan Jørgensen warns of a serious situation. The EU is promoting remote work to alleviate energy demands. Despite these measures, there is a prevailing belief that normalcy will return after the crisis, reminiscent of responses to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Read at Yahoo News