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How physical distancing has played out for European businesses

As coronavirus-related lockdowns went into effect, companies across Europe had to quickly assess how to keep their employees and customers safe through physical distancing. How they chose to adapt was based on whether they needed people to work remotely because the risk of infection spread was high in their industry, as well as how easy it was to have people work remotely. Those with high need and low ability have been the ones most disrupted by employee-related challenges—namely (and not surprisingly), hospitality, construction, entertainment, retail, and personal services.

In cases where remote working is necessary, some occupations and businesses can adapt readily; in others, the work location is fixed and cannot adapt easily.
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To read the article, see “How European businesses can position themselves for recovery,” April 2020.