Employees at large companies in Tokyo are being allowed more flexibility in their working style as the number of people who travel to the office daily to work slipped below 50%.
The percentage of commuters who come into the office three to four days per week rose to 26.5% in 2024 from 22% a year earlier, largely accounting for the drop in workers who come in every day, which fell to 47.4% from 53.1%, according to a survey published on Wednesday by Nomura Research Institute.
Japan’s government downgraded COVID-19 to a Class 5 infectious disease in May 2023, putting it on the same level as seasonal influenza. That made mask and social distancing measures optional and paved the way for workers to begin returning to the office. As many as 82.8% of respondents worked fully in-office before the pandemic, while that number was as low as 38.3% in 2022, the survey shows.
NRI has conducted its survey on work style and migration annually for the past three years. For the July 2024 survey, it polled 3,091 people from ages 20-69 who work for large companies in Tokyo.
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