Data: BLS; Chart: Tory Lysik/Axios Visuals
Emily Peck, author of Axios Markets
Source: www.axios.com, March 2023
Millions fewer Americans worked remotely last year, according to a new survey from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Why it matters: The data show the work world returning to a new normal, where there is some working from home — more than in the pre-COVID era — but less than at the height of the Zoom and sweatpants moment.
By the numbers: The share of establishments with employees rarely or never working remotely rose to 72.5%, up from 60.1% the year before.
- On the flip side: Establishments with employees working remotely some or all of the time declined to 28% last year, down from 40% in 2021.
- White-collar industries still have a large share of folks working from home. In the information sector (which includes tech and media companies), 67% of firms had people working from home some or all the time last year.
- Financial services saw a big drop from 2021 to 2022 — from 55% to 33%.
Methodology: An establishment is defined as a single location where one predominant business activity is conducted. These surveys can capture companies of all sizes.
- The survey was conducted in August and September of last year, while the 2021 survey went out from July to September.
State of play: The Wall Street Journal, reporting on the data, suggested the remote era was fading away.
- But before the pandemic, only about 5% of workers were remote, according to data from Nicholas Bloom, a Stanford economics professor who’s been tracking the trend for years.
What to watch: How much farther the lines on the chart above fall this year. Some high-profile companies really want workers in offices — and any softness in the economy or uncertainty in the job market gives executives far more leverage to get them there.
