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Home Sweet Home: Working from home and employee performance during the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK

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  • Deole, Sumit S.
  • Deter, Max
  • Huang, Yue

Abstract

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic forced governments in many countries to ask employees to work from home (WFH) where possible. Using representative data from the UK, we show that increases in WFH frequency are associated with a higher self-perceived productivity per hour and an increase in weekly working hours among the employed. The WFH-productivity relationship is stronger for employees residing in regions worse affected by the pandemic and those who previously commuted longer distances, while it is weaker for mothers with childcare responsibilities. Also, we find that employees with higher autonomy over job tasks and work hours and those with childcare responsibilities worked longer hours when working from home. With prospects that WFH possibility may remain permanently open for some employees, we discuss our results' labor market policy implications.

Suggested Citation

  • Deole, Sumit S. & Deter, Max & Huang, Yue, 2021. "Home Sweet Home: Working from home and employee performance during the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK," GLO Discussion Paper Series 791, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:glodps:791
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    Cited by:

    1. Jose Maria Barrero & Nicholas Bloom & Steven J. Davis, 2020. "Why Working From Home Will Stick," Working Papers 2020-174, Becker Friedman Institute for Research In Economics.
    2. Masayuki Morikawa, 2024. "Productivity dynamics of work from home: Firm-level evidence from Japan," Journal of Evolutionary Economics, Springer, vol. 34(2), pages 465-487, April.
    3. repec:osf:socarx:wfdbe_v1 is not listed on IDEAS
    4. Burdett, Ashley & Etheridge, Ben & Tang, Li & Wang, Yikai, 2024. "Worker productivity during Covid-19 and adaptation to working from home," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 167(C).
    5. Maria Barrero, Jose & Bloom, Nicholas & Davis, Steven J., 2021. "Internet access and its implications for productivity, inequality and resilience," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 113869, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    6. Daniel García-Costa & Francisco Grimaldo & Giangiacomo Bravo & Bahar Mehmani & Flaminio Squazzoni, 2024. "The silver lining of COVID-19 restrictions: research output of academics under lockdown," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 129(3), pages 1771-1786, March.
    7. Zarate, Pablo & Dolls, Mathias & Davis, Steven & Bloom, Nicholas & Barrero, Jose Maria & Aksoy, Cevat Giray, 2024. "Why Does Working from Home Vary Across Countries and People?," CEPR Discussion Papers 19003, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    8. Deole, Sumit S. & Zeydanli, Tugba, 2021. "Does education predict gender role attitudes?: Evidence from European datasets," GLO Discussion Paper Series 793, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    9. Jiang, Mingyu & Yasui, Kengo & Yugami, Kazufumi, 2024. "Working from home, job tasks, and productivity," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(8).
    10. Davalos,Maria Eugenia & Londono Aguirre,Diana Isabel & Medina Gaspar,Daniel Santiago, 2023. "How Have Gender Gaps in the Colombian Labor Market Changed during the Economic Recovery?," Policy Research Working Paper Series 10605, The World Bank.
    11. Asako Chiba & Shunsuke Hori & Taisuke Nakata & Shusaku Sasaki & Reo Takaku, 2025. "COVID-19 Infection and Its Labor Supply Impact: Evidence from a Large-scale Survey in Japan," CARF F-Series CARF-F-596, Center for Advanced Research in Finance, Faculty of Economics, The University of Tokyo.
    12. Stephen Clark, 2024. "Evaluating the impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic on Banksy’s limited edition print market," SN Business & Economics, Springer, vol. 4(4), pages 1-17, April.
    13. Gallo, Giovanni & Nagore García, Amparo, 2025. "Retirement Decisions in the Age of COVID-19 pandemic: Are Older Employees in Digital Occupations Working Longer?," GLO Discussion Paper Series 1553, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    14. Richard Machin, 2023. "UK local government experience of COVID-19 Lockdown: Local responses to global challenges," Local Economy, London South Bank University, vol. 38(1), pages 80-91, February.
    15. Sharfizie Mohd Sharip & Nur Rasyida Mohd Rashid & Syahrul Bariah Abdul Hamid & Asiah Abdullah & Noor Hidayah Pungot, 2023. "The Work from Home Revolution: WFH Starter Kit," Information Management and Business Review, AMH International, vol. 15(2), pages 226-237.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Working from home; productivity; working hours; COVID-19 pandemic;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity

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