In the post-pandemic era, most aspects of life have returned to normal. People are flocking to cinemas, holidaymakers jammed airports this summer and children have returned to classrooms.
The one thing that has remained stubbornly fraught is the world of work.
Three and a half years after millions of office staff were sent home en masse, many companies, employees and governments around the world are still figuring out how to adapt to lasting changes to corporate life.
But stark differences have emerged across continents and cultures, with employees in Asia and Europe largely returning to offices at a faster pace to those in the Americas.
Asian nations did a better job curbing the spread of Covid-19 in the pandemic’s first year, so people there did not get as accustomed to working from home, making it easier to return to office life, researchers have found.
Watch: UAE to issue remote work visas
Habits in Europe vary widely – the UK has one of the highest rates of remote work and France one of the lowest – but several countries there have led the way with laws enshrining flexible schedules.
Then there are places such as the US, where policymakers have stayed largely silent, leaving bosses and employees to organise the changes on their own.
As the post-Labor Day period in the US marks the return to normal schedules after the summer holidays, companies including Amazon and Zoom Video Communications have sought to get workers back to their offices for at least part of the week.
Even then, staff are facing vastly different policies depending on their companies, managers and locations.
Goldman Sachs Group wants staff to be in the office five days a week. At Walt Disney, it is four days, while for companies including Amazon and Google, it is three.
Hybrid schedules are now the norm for office workers in the world’s largest economy.
The chaotic nature of the return to work was understandable two years ago, when Covid-19 was still circulating at crisis levels and “the Great Resignation” and “lying flat” were the catchphrases of the day for employees pushing back on norms.
Now, cooling economies mean hiring has slowed in many sectors, giving bosses a greater ability to call the shots, while layoffs and cost-cutting measures have many staff concerned.
Yet the debate is far from settled, leaving questions about the role of offices, the integration of work and life, and the measurement of productivity and pay.
UAE salary guide – in pictures
How it plays out carries significant economic consequences. McKinsey Global Institute estimates that pandemic shifts could erase as much as $1.3 trillion of property value in big cities around the world by 2030.
“Everyone is asking, ‘Is this going to come back?’” says Phil Kirschner, who advises executives on property and workplace strategies at McKinsey in the US.
“What we’ve done is Band-Aided some tools together to prevent the ship from sinking. But we haven’t done the difficult work to say, ‘The way we were working before was not universally great for everybody. And this is the new reality.’”
In Japan, the nation’s largest lenders are eschewing a minimum number of office days every week, in contrast to their Wall Street counterparts.
Unilever, the European manufacturer of Dove soap, allows desk-based staff a good deal of flexibility in both where and when they work, and has introduced four-day workweek pilot schemes in several countries.
But cultural and structural factors have contributed to regional variations, says Phil Ryan, London-based director of JLL City Futures, part of the global research and analysis arm of the real estate company Jones Lang LaSalle.
“Some of it is absolutely cultural – some places have more expectations of people coming in,” he says.
“In some places, it’s about reliable public transportation. Another big difference is home sizes. In the US, they have larger home offices, so they don’t feel that the office is a better place to work.”
In Hong Kong, tiny apartments and an efficient public transport system have given residents fewer reasons to work from home.
In New York, subways are still 70 per cent full on weekdays and about half of workers are back at buildings on a given day, compared with pre-Covid levels.
Working remotely has been generally more accepted and widespread in the US, say Mark Mortensen and Henrik Bresman, professors at the Insead business school.
That is due in part to the preponderance of technology, finance and business-services roles – so-called knowledge workers – that are computer-intensive and thus more conducive to remote work.
US staff in tech, finance and professional services work from home nearly a full day more a week than those in government and healthcare roles, according to research from a team of economists, including Stanford University professor Nicholas Bloom.
This is not likely to change much. The research from Mr Mortensen and Mr Bresman found that the proportion of people in America who said their productivity while working remotely was at optimal levels was almost double that in the rest of the world.
In contrast, a working paper on data-entry workers in India found those working from home were 18 per cent less productive.
Employees in Europe and Asia are more concerned about missing out on social connections with co-workers than those in the US, Mr Mortensen’s research showed.
Andrea Lovato, managing partner at F&P Equity Partners in Milan, says he is not against remote work, but that “in-person work has many more benefits”.
“When you are sharing the same space in the office, there is closer interaction with colleagues, a more spontaneous development of ideas and innovation, and higher engagement from people,” he says.
Cities matter as much as culture, says Despina Katsikakis, global head of real estate company Cushman & Wakefield's workplace research and insights division.
“Cities in Europe are more walkable and bring together work, life and play,” she says.
“So, European offices are more connected to blended, vibrant communities versus the US, where offices are more dictated by zoning laws and in more isolated areas.”
The disparities have upended the commercial property market, where empty offices and the fastest pace of interest rate rises in a generation are leading to a debt crisis among some landlords.
A McKinsey report in July explored the differences among cities, showing that office-heavy areas of New York and San Francisco have suffered steeper declines in real estate demand, alongside lower rates of office attendance, compared with cities including Paris and Munich.
The consultancy estimated about $800 billion may be wiped out from the value of office buildings in nine major cities in a moderate scenario, and as much as $1.3 trillion as a worst case.
In Europe, policymakers have stepped in to help shape the future of work by promoting more flexible arrangements.
At least half a dozen nations have passed or proposed legislation to govern remote work, fuelled by the EU’s 2021 “right to disconnect” proposal, a call to grant employees in the bloc legal rights to switch off from work-related tasks and electronic communication outside normal business hours.
Already enforced in France, Spain and Belgium, the policy is backed by a majority in the European Parliament.
The move could become EU law by the end of the year, says Ben Marks, co-founder of the Future Workforce Alliance, a forum of politicians, business leaders and academics focused on policy changes.
European offices are more connected to blended, vibrant communities versus the US, where offices are more dictated by zoning laws and in more isolated areas
Despina Katsikakis,
global head of workplace research and insights at Cushman & Wakefield
Support for the right to disconnect goes well beyond Europe. Governments from Colombia to Canada have passed similar measures, and Kenya is considering it.
Beyond that, the Netherlands last year passed a law to establish the legal right to work from home, and its Senate is expected to vote on the plan this year.
The bill requires employers to consider employee requests to work remotely as long as their professions allow it, while insisting that the employee’s request be “reasonable and fair”.
The Netherlands ranks fifth globally in the number of remote jobs available, according to recent data from Lightcast and Revelio Labs, and some Dutch employers came to embrace flexible work during the pandemic.
Matthijs Welle, the Amsterdam-based chief executive of Mews, which provides software for hotels, says he previously “never believed in work from home” but now allows his 800 employees across 20 countries to work from anywhere after closing offices in about six cities.
“I think it’s needed to drive this conversation with more traditional managers, who have shut the door on it,” he says, referring to the legislation.
Millions of staff in the UK, meanwhile, will soon have the right to request flexible working arrangements after starting a job.
Previously, they had to wait half a year before making such a request.
In Belgium, employees in February 2022 won the right to a four-day workweek at the same pay.
Critics of right-to-disconnect laws say such measures could be largely symbolic in today’s world.
Meanwhile, data from Microsoft found a “third peak” of productivity after 9pm during the pandemic, with the average Teams user sending 42 per cent more chats after hours, compared with early 2020.
Then there are people who have moved to work remotely from entirely new locations, often logging on at unconventional times.
Best destinations for digital nomads – in pictures
During the pandemic, Portuguese cities including Lisbon became a haven for digital nomads from the US and elsewhere, who took advantage of favourable tax rates, cheap property and a visa that allowed remote workers to live in the country for up to five years.
Lisbon was the most-visited remote work hub in 2022, according to Nomad, a remote-worker network, but visits are down 32 per cent so far in 2023.
Rents and property prices in the city have risen sharply and in February the government announced it would end its “golden visa” path-to-citizenship programme for foreign citizens who invest in real estate in the country.
In response, digital nomads are now looking outside the US and Europe – eight of the 10 fastest-growing remote-work hubs in 2023 so far are in Asia, including Tokyo, Seoul and Ho Chi Minh City.
In the US, Labor Day was a marker of a renewed push towards stricter office-attendance policies, and this year is no different.
At the World Bank in Washington, president Ajay Banga wanted staff back four days starting this week.
Even Workhuman, a company that provides worker-recognition programmes and prides itself on listening closely to employee concerns, has asked most of its staff to come back to offices twice a week, beginning this month.
“The summer is wide open, then things normalise in September,” says KeyAnna Schmiedl, Workhuman’s chief human experience officer.
But any business leader who hopes things will get “back to normal” will be disappointed, because the workplace is fundamentally different now.
Business leaders have raised concerns about the effects of working from home, but they also know that the practice is now ingrained, a survey by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York found.
Work is no longer a place people go, it is a thing they do – and when, where and how it happens is no longer written in stone.
“Covid was a portal we walked through,” says Mr Kirschner of McKinsey. “And we’re not going back.”
How to improve Arabic reading in early years
One 45-minute class per week in Standard Arabic is not sufficient
The goal should be for grade 1 and 2 students to become fluent readers
Subjects like technology, social studies, science can be taught in later grades
Grade 1 curricula should include oral instruction in Standard Arabic
First graders must regularly practice individual letters and combinations
Time should be slotted in class to read longer passages in early grades
Improve the appearance of textbooks
Revision of curriculum should be undertaken as per research findings
Conjugations of most common verb forms should be taught
Systematic learning of Standard Arabic grammar
Breast cancer in men: the facts
1) Breast cancer is men is rare but can develop rapidly. It usually occurs in those over the ages of 60, but can occasionally affect younger men.
2) Symptoms can include a lump, discharge, swollen glands or a rash.
3) People with a history of cancer in the family can be more susceptible.
4) Treatments include surgery and chemotherapy but early diagnosis is the key.
5) Anyone concerned is urged to contact their doctor
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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Apple%20Mac%20through%20the%20years
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Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
Short-term let permits explained
Homeowners and tenants are allowed to list their properties for rental by registering through the Dubai Tourism website to obtain a permit.
Tenants also require a letter of no objection from their landlord before being allowed to list the property.
There is a cost of Dh1,590 before starting the process, with an additional licence fee of Dh300 per bedroom being rented in your home for the duration of the rental, which ranges from three months to a year.
Anyone hoping to list a property for rental must also provide a copy of their title deeds and Ejari, as well as their Emirates ID.
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre, twin-turbo V8
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 582bhp
Torque: 730Nm
Price: Dh649,000
On sale: now
U19 WORLD CUP, WEST INDIES
UAE group fixtures (all in St Kitts)
- Saturday 15 January: UAE beat Canada by 49 runs
- Thursday 20 January: v England
- Saturday 22 January: v Bangladesh
UAE squad:
Alishan Sharafu (captain), Shival Bawa, Jash Giyanani, Sailles
Jaishankar, Nilansh Keswani, Aayan Khan, Punya Mehra, Ali Naseer, Ronak Panoly,
Dhruv Parashar, Vinayak Raghavan, Soorya Sathish, Aryansh Sharma, Adithya
Shetty, Kai Smith
The specs: 2018 Audi R8 V10 RWS
Price: base / as tested: From Dh632,225
Engine: 5.2-litre V10
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 540hp @ 8,250rpm
Torque: 540Nm @ 6,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.4L / 100km
match info
Union Berlin 0
Bayern Munich 1 (Lewandowski 40' pen, Pavard 80')
Man of the Match: Benjamin Pavard (Bayern Munich)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Syria squad
Goalkeepers: Ibrahim Alma, Mahmoud Al Youssef, Ahmad Madania.
Defenders: Ahmad Al Salih, Moayad Ajan, Jehad Al Baour, Omar Midani, Amro Jenyat, Hussein Jwayed, Nadim Sabagh, Abdul Malek Anezan.
Midfielders: Mahmoud Al Mawas, Mohammed Osman, Osama Omari, Tamer Haj Mohamad, Ahmad Ashkar, Youssef Kalfa, Zaher Midani, Khaled Al Mobayed, Fahd Youssef.
Forwards: Omar Khribin, Omar Al Somah, Mardik Mardikian.
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
