Pandemic Shifts Home-Based Workforce Demographics.

The U.S. Census Bureau has released survey data showing that people working from home became younger, more diverse, better educated, and more likely to move during the COVID-19 pandemic. The share of the U.S. labor force working from home went from 5.7% in 2019 to 17.9% in 2021, with the demographic makeup of people working from home becoming more like workers who were commuting. The two industry groups that saw the greatest jumps in people working from home were in information and finance, insurance, and real estate. The share of home-based workers with a college degree also jumped from just over half to more than two-thirds.