A New Norm? Exploring the Shift to Working From Home in the Post-Pandemic Labor Market

Malak Kadoussi (University of Evry Paris-Saclay)

 

This paper focuses on examining the impact of working from home on labor mar-

ket outcomes using an extension of the search and matching model. The objective

is to address the data gap to (i) explain the increase in the share of remote workers

following the COVID-19 crisis; (ii) investigate the effects of this shift on labor mar-

ket outcomes in two distinct areas; and (iii) assess the potential benefits of working

from home in reducing inequalities between urban and rural regions. We show that

although the Post-COVID economy suffers from the increase in commuting costs,

both the decrease in the disutility in remote work and the increase in productivity

of remoters offset this negative impact. We also show that when the disutility of re-

mote work is sufficiently low, it lowers unemployment and wage inequalities between

the urban and rural areas. Finally, we analyze the welfare of unemployed workers

and economic wealth. It highlights the benefits of reducing remote work disutility.