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Labour Force Surveys (LFS) – Theme: Working from home during the Corona pandemic

Working from home most common among female employees in the government sector during the corona pandemic

Statistical news from Statistics Sweden 2022-09-13 8.00

The spread of the coronavirus during the spring of 2020 caused many employed to abruptly switch to working from home. During the period January 2021 to May 2022, on average 56.7 percent of the government employed women worked from home. Working from home was also common among those with at least a post-secondary education as well as among Swedish born with children living at home.

Data for the period January 2021 to May 2022 from the labour force survey was used to shed light on the employed aged 15–74 who worked from home at least half of the working days.

Working from home peaked in March 2021

During the studied period, the share of the employed who worked from home varied affected by the public health agency of Sweden’s general recommendations. Government agencies also had a governmental assignment to facilitate working from home for their employees during the period.

The share who worked from home, regardless of its extent, was on average 46.5 percent during the period. The corresponding figure for those working at least half of the working days from home was 25.9 percent. The share who worked at least half of the working days from home peaked in March 2021. After that, the share decreased until November the same year to reach one of its highest levels in January 2022 once again.

Employed aged 15–74. Share who worked from home, percent.

Graph: Employed aged 15–74. Share who worked from home, percent.

Government employed worked from home to the greatest extent

The share who worked at least half of the working days from home was slightly higher among women than among men, 26.6 and 25.3 percent respectively, but it varied between sectors. The largest discrepancy between the sexes could be found in the government sector. During the period, on average, 56.7 percent of women worked from home at least half of the working days, and the corresponding figure for men was 43.2 percent.

Employed aged 15–74. Share who worked from home at least half of the working days by sector and sex, average for the period, percent.
  Both sexes Women Men
Government 50.5 56.7 43.2
Municipal 14.4 14.2 16.7
County council 10.9 11.1 ..
Private 27.4 30.7 25.4

It is apparent that the governmental assignment to facilitate work from home for employees influenced the tendency to work from home. The share who worked from home at least half of the working days in the government sector increased by 21.2 percentage points between December 2021 and January 2022, when the governmental assignment was reinstated. The corresponding increase in the private sector was 7.6 percentage points. In addition, it appears that the share who worked at least half of the working days from home was the highest in eastern Sweden, and especially in Stockholm.

Employed aged 15–74. Share who worked from home at least half of the working days by sector, percent.

Graph: Employed aged 15–74. Share who worked from home at least half of the working days by sector, percent.

Work from home more common among post-secondary educated

The share who worked from home varied with educational level and sex. Among those with a post-secondary education, the share who worked at least half of the working days from home was on average 37.1 percent during the period. The corresponding figure for those with at most a secondary educational level was 12.6 percent. The share was higher among men with a post-secondary education compared to women with the same educational level. The discrepancy between the sexes was smaller for those with at most a secondary educational level, and the share was higher among women compared to men in this group.

When the tendency to work from home among different professional groups was compared, it appeared that it was among employed in professions that require post-secondary education where the share of the employed working from home was the highest.

Employed aged 15–74. Share who worked from home at least half of the working days by educational level and sex, average for the period, percent.
Educational level Both sexes Women Men
At most secondary 12.6 14.2 11.7
Post-secondary 37.1 34.1 40.7

Working from home more common among Swedish born with children

Among Swedish born, the share who worked from home at least half of the working days was larger than the share among foreign born. For Swedish born, the share was 27.0 percent and among foreign born it was 21.8 percent.

People with children under the age of 19 living at home worked from home at least half of the working days to a larger extent compared to people without children living at home. The shares were 30.4 and 22.5 percent, respectively. There was no significant difference between men and women within the groups; however, there were differences between Swedish born and foreign born with children under the age of 19 living at home. Among people with children living at home, working from home at least half of the working days was more common for Swedish born compared to foreign born.

In the age group 65–74, the share who worked from home at least half of the working days was higher compared to younger age groups. People aged 65–74 belonged to the groups at risk during the pandemic and specific recommendations were directed to the group, which is probably the reason why the share in this group was higher compared to younger age groups.

Publication

A more detailed presentation can be found in the report:

Labour Force Survey (LFS) – Theme: Working from home during
the Corona pandemic

Next publishing will be

2022-09-21

Feel free to use the facts from this statistical news but remember to state Source: Statistics Sweden.

Statistical agency

Statistics Sweden

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