Experiencing A Spike In COVID-19 Cases, Japan Implements Online Work

Illustration of Covid-19 in Japan (doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - More than 30,000 people in Japan have been infected with COVID-19, 1,000 of them even reportedly died. The soaring cases of corona infection have made the Japanese government encourage companies in the country to implement policies to work online.

These steps were taken to reduce cases of transmission of COVID-19 among workers. Where some workers tested positive for not maintaining social distancing while working.

Tokyo and a number of other large urban areas have seen a spike in COVID-19 cases in the past week. This has experts worried about a second wave of the coronavirus.

Japanese Economy Minister, Yasutoshi Nishimura, encouraged business people and businesses to take steps to prevent COVID-19. One of them is by pushing back to work online.

"At one point, the commuter rate fell by 70 to 80 percent, but now it's only about 30 percent. We really don't want to repeat this, so we have to find new ways to work," Nishimura said, as quoted by Antara, Monday, July 27th.

Based on daily records, since last week there were 366 new cases recorded. Meanwhile, the southern city of Fukuoka reported an additional 90 new cases last Sunday, along with the increasing number of patients in Osaka.

With an increase in new daily cases, Nishimura called on companies to avoid large gatherings and urged changes to be carried out immediately. Nishimura said last week that concerns were mounting over clusters, particularly those involving bars, workplaces and after-work outreach.

Although the number of corona cases with serious conditions is still relatively small, the government is also concerned about the increase in infections among people in their 40s and 50s. The central government remains determined to restart economic activity and last week launched a domestic travel campaign amid widespread criticism.

Meanwhile, Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike has asked his people to stay at home for four days each week. This step was taken to reduce the potential for transmission of COVID-19 during domestic travel.