Dan Ness, Principal Analyst, MetaFacts, September 16, 2021
Age, education, and teamwork favor working from home
Those who are working from home are demographically distinct from those who are not. We found many demographic differences in our survey of 13,918 respondents across the US, Germany, UK, Japan, and China for TUP/Technology User Profile 2021.
Workers working from home are younger than workers not working from home and those not employed outside the home. Those working from home are also more likely to have a partner and higher educational attainment.
Distinct households for working from home
The household profile of workers working from home is above average in several ways.
Workers working from home are more likely to have a large household, household income above the country’s average, and own their dwelling. Also, remote workers are much more likely to have children in the house, especially young kids up to 11 years old.
Many jobs and industries differ in working from home rates
Some jobs are more suitable for working from home. Those roles which more heavily involve information and communication have more workers working from home. The top two employer roles worldwide involve management and FIRE – finance, insurance, and real estate – making up 20% and 12% of online workers, respectively. Similarly, the top two industry groups for working at home include FIRE and information. While these industries do have jobs that demand an in-person presence, they are fewer than within other industry groups.
The bottom two employment roles with relatively fewer workers working from home include customer service and administrative jobs. Even though much of the work in these two roles has been automated and can be done effectively while remote, some employers did not change rapidly enough to support it. The two lowest industry groups are health care/social assistance and state & local government. Health care may be the least surprising, as many of the jobs in that industry require in-person contact.
Looking ahead
Many jobs and industries have been transforming for decades, increasingly taking advantage of new technology. The pandemic has accelerated change for some employers that had been otherwise resisting. Barriers that had seemed daunting have now been proven possible. Overcoming challenges is not enough, though, to bring about lasting change. We can expect continued digital transformation for both the short and long term, although less rapidly as during the last two years.
About this TUPdate
TUPdates feature analysis of current or essential technology topics. The research results showcase the TUP/Technology User Profile study, MetaFacts’ survey of a representative sample of online adults profiling the full market’s use of technology products and services. The current wave of TUP is TUP/Technology User Profile 2021, which is TUP’s 39th annual. TUPdates may also include results from previous waves of TUP.
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Indexing
Lenses: Work/Life Balance, User Profile
Tables: 200 WFHxCOUNTRY
Tags: COVID, Pandemic, Telework, Teleworkers, Work from home, Remote workers, Demographics, Sociodemographics, Household, Profile, Income, Children, Parents, Executive, Industry, Employment role, Employees, Household size, Household composition, Age, Age groups
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