Remote jobs are quickly becoming the new norm and, judging from how the world looks at the moment, working from home is here to stay. In a present shaped by the new reality of social distancing, people are starting to adjust to the demands of a new world.
In the context of constant social distancing measures taken by the authorities, many industries are experiencing considerable loss and are obliged to reduce or even stop their current activities. The few organizations which are allowed to run their businesses on a normal basis are the ones that can easily perform their jobs from home.
This paves the way for an increasingly unbalanced working environment, where IT and many digital firms are lightly affected, whilst the manufacturing and commercial industries are facing unprecedented loss.
The differential impact on economic activity and jobs caused by the lockdown measures imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic might hold more in store for our future than we think. Will the modern workforce ever be the same again after the pandemic is over?
The feasibility of remote working and types of jobs that are most at risk
Only 37% of jobs in the United States can be done entirely from home and these numbers decrease in less developed countries.
About 15 % of the workforce are at high risk of layoffs and furlough across the 35 advanced and emerging countries analyzed in a recent study. This category of least likely to work from home individuals includes young workers who do not own a college degree and those working for non-standard contracts in smaller firms.
The effects of lockdown policies are being unequally distributed across industries, with accommodation, food services, transportation, retail, and the wholesale sectors being among the most affected.
Environments with high feasibility of teleworking are represented mainly by IT-related jobs, which used to include the possibility of working from home even before the COVID-19 crisis started. Not only can web designers and IT professionals perform their jobs just as productively and efficiently from home, but they are also already familiar with this type of working conditions, unlike professionals who don’t work from home on a regular basis.
Despite the fact that remote-friendly jobs are not widely available, forward-thinking businesses are starting to adapt to the circumstances imposed by the pandemic. Many retail companies have already started to invest in modernizing their e-commerce platforms and transform the retail experience as we know it.
How can the government deal with this inequality?
- Focusing on those problems that affect people unable to work from home, decreasing commuter transport fees or funding companies so that they can provide better childcare options. “It could be more targeted and nuanced than just giving out money and taxing the people that do telework,” says Juan Palomino, economist at the University of Oxford.
- Providing support for more people to access higher-paying, remote-friendly jobs, investing more in internet infrastructure and reliable power supply.
“Looking into the future, I would say the impact of education, which has always been key, is going to be even greater,” continued Palomino, which suggested that one priority for governments now should be investing in education.
While access to higher education can definitely provide a strong foundation for individuals to work remotely, there still remain some industries that aren’t, at least for now, compatible with working from home. What does their future look like?
