The Impact of COVID-19 on Workers' Expectations and Preferences for Remote Work
AEA Papers and Proceedings
vol. 113,
May 2023
(pp. 556-61)
Abstract
We study how COVID-19 affected the prevalence, expectations, and attitudes toward remote work using specially designed surveys. The incidence of remote work remains higher than prepandemic levels, and both men and women expect this to persist postpandemic. Workers also report increased preference for remote work as a result of the pandemic. These changes are strongly correlated with individuals' exposure to the pandemic-induced work-from-home shock, indicating that experience with remote work during the pandemic likely shaped expectations and preferences toward WFH. The magnitude of the effects on preferences and expectations are similar across gender, marital status, and presence of children.Citation
Chen, Yuting, Patricia Cortes, Gizem Kosar, Jessica Pan, and Basit Zafar. 2023. "The Impact of COVID-19 on Workers' Expectations and Preferences for Remote Work." AEA Papers and Proceedings, 113: 556-61. DOI: 10.1257/pandp.20231090Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- D84 Expectations; Speculations
- I12 Health Behavior
- J16 Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
- J22 Time Allocation and Labor Supply
- M54 Personnel Economics: Labor Management