Since the COVID-19 pandemic, significantly more people have been performing their jobs remotely instead of going into an office. Work-from-home policies have largely stuck around since the COVID-19 related restrictions have been lifted, changing the way people across the country work.
Some of the effects of this are easy to see. Downtowns that used to be full of office workers are more sparse. Commuting patterns have changed However, we are only just beginning to understand what these policies have done to impact the labor market.
A recent working paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research by Emma Harrington and Matthew Kahn looks at one outcome that comes from increased work from home opportunities: a reduction in the motherhood penalty, the career setbacks and earning disadvantages often experienced by women after having children.
The motherhood penalty can result in a variety of negative outcomes for mothers in the labor force, including slower career progression, fewer opportunities for promotions, and lower overall earnings compared to their male counterparts and women without children.
One crucial aspect the researchers considered is who chooses to work from home when the option is available. It's not simply a matter of everyone transitioning to remote work equally. Factors such as the nature of the job, individual preferences, and household circumstances likely play significant roles in determining who takes advantage of location flexibility. Understanding these choices is essential for accurately assessing the broader impacts of work from home policies.
The authors’ analysis focused on technological advancements that made remote work feasible in various college degree fields even before the pandemic. By examining how the potential for working from home in different occupations influenced employment gaps for mothers, they uncovered compelling evidence of the impacts of work from home on the motherhood penalty.
Their findings suggest that increased opportunities for remote work actually narrowed the employment gaps between mothers and others in the workforce. This effect was particularly pronounced in careers that have traditionally been considered less family-friendly such as finance and business. These are jobs that traditionally have longer and less flexible hours.
An interesting finding from this paper is that mothers who work from home use their added work flexibility to take care of their children. For example, it’s easier to pick a kid up from school if you don’t have to leave and then return to the office.
One question this raises for me is whether or not work-from-home policies might lead to fathers taking on a more even share of the child care responsibilities? Studies have found that women are more likely than men to be called by schools, which can lead to labor market challenges for women. If more men work from home, perhaps some of these external norms might begin to shift in such a way that helps further balance the duties of childcare.
While the long-term consequences of the widespread shift to working from home are still unfolding, research like this suggests some potentially positive outcomes. The increased feasibility and acceptance of remote work may offer a pathway to a more equitable labor market, where mothers are better able to maintain successful careers without facing the traditional penalties associated with balancing work and family life.