While the coronavirus pandemic has led to a rise in remote work, that rise is far more apparent in the average number of days employees are working remotely rather than the number of employees doing so.
The average number of workdays telecommuters are working from home has more than doubled since last fall, according to Gallup poll results release this morning, rising from 5.8 days per month to 11.9 days currently. At the same time, the percentage of workers who say they have ever telecommuted for work has risen from 42% last October to 49% by the second week of August.
The poll also says 26% of U.S. workers report that they have worked entirely from home in recent weeks, while 51% are working entirely from a location outside their home, with one in five reporting a mix of on-site and remote work.
“The widespread closure of businesses and schools to control the spread of the coronavirus sent unemployment soaring,” Jeffrey Jones writes for the Gallup website. “The jobs situation would have been much worse if not for advances in technology that allow many workers to complete their work remotely. Close to half of U.S. workers have now taken advantage of opportunities to telecommute, and currently about one-quarter are doing so every workday.”
