Early Remote Work Impacts on Family Formation
by Lyman Stone and Adam Ozimek Key Findings: In absence of time-consuming commutes, remote workers—particularly those living with children—are spending more time on childcare and housework. This increased flexibility and time helped boost birth rates over the pandemic, specifically for wealthier...
Hasnain says:
Interesting read and I’d love to see any follow up studies here. I like how it presents the trade off between remote work and fertility rates. With how much some governments have been harping on about lower birth rates, you’d think they’d be open to more flexibility here, but they keep wanting to force people back into the office. Or not allowing immigrants. Sigh.
“Overall we see the impact of remote work on women’s intentions for family formation and the desire to have children. While remote work appears to have the biggest positive impact on older women who already have children, the clear positive impact on marriage rates suggests the potential for longer-run impacts—including changed fertility rates—on younger women. While the evidence is early and far from conclusive, we believe this research makes the case for the hypothesis that elevated levels of remote work during COVID made a positive contribution to the U.S. and potentially other developed countries’ fertility rates. Moreover, we believe this evidence is suggestive that the “return to the office” may contribute to falling birth rates, and that governments interested in supporting marriage and implementing pro-natal policies may be interested in considering how flexible work arrangements can be supported and encouraged.”
Posted on 2023-03-31T16:12:10+0000