This research and data was paid for by Green.com.au. If you use it, please cite and link to our client and Primara Research. Thank you.
As the Albanese government diagnoses Australia's fuel crisis as a demand-side problem, new research points to a policy solution with unusually broad public backing: 82% of full-time employees who expressed a view support legally mandated employer obligations to offer remote work where feasible. Support is strongest among those with the most to gain, full-time workers aged 25-44, many of whom have been pushed further from city centres by housing affordability pressures and face longer, costlier commutes, back the measure at 84%. Among workers specifically worried about daily commute costs, support rises to 85%, suggesting these are people who know their roles could realistically go remote. With Prime Minister Albanese confirming the crisis stems from increased demand rather than reduced supply, and a new fuel taskforce now established to find solutions, mandated work-from-home rights represent a rare alignment between what the public wants, what the science of demand reduction supports, and what the government has identified as the problem it needs to solve.
New research reveals overwhelming support for mandated work-from-home rights as a solution to Australia's fuel crisis, with 82% of full-time employees who expressed a view backing employer requirements to offer remote work where feasible, rising to 84% among full time workers under 45 years old.
The findings arrive as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese establishes a new fuel supply taskforce, led by former Australian Energy Regulator CEO Anthea Harris, with the government diagnosing the crisis as a demand-side issue. With Albanese confirming "there is not less supply" but rather "increased demand" driving shortages and price spikes, mandated work-from-home rights emerge as a direct solution to reduce unnecessary fuel consumption and address the demand pressures at the crisis's core.
Support Strongest Among Those Most Affected:
Full-time workers aged 25-44, who face longer commutes after being pushed further from city centres by housing affordability pressures, show the highest support at 84%. Support remains strong across age groups, with 84% of under-45s backing mandates compared to 77% of those aged 45 and over.
Among those worried about daily commute costs who expressed a view on mandated work-from-home rights, 85% support it, suggesting these workers occupy roles that could realistically transition to remote work.
Fuel Shortage Concerns Reinforce Support:
With 90% of Australians worried about fuel shortages (93.3% of 18-24 year olds), those expressing concern show equally strong backing for work-from-home mandates as a practical solution to ease supply pressures.
The research positions work-from-home policy as a potential solution to the demand pressures the government has identified as the core challenge.
