Research conducted by Chicago Booth found that in 2021 and 2022, approximately 40 percent of the time saved by individuals who adopted remote work arrangements was reinvested back into their professional commitments. This data highlights the significant boost in productivity experienced by many American workers as they utilized a substantial portion of their time savings to further engage in their job responsibilities.
To obtain these insights, the researchers leveraged their Global Survey of Working Arrangements, surveying a sizable cohort of 19,000 full-time employees across 27 countries during the aforementioned period. The survey encompassed inquiries regarding commute durations to their respective workplaces, frequency of remote work versus traditional commuting, and future intentions pertaining to remote work post-pandemic. Utilizing the amassed data, the researchers accurately calculated the amount of time saved by individuals through reduced commuting. Additionally, respondents were questioned about how they employed their time savings.
Time savings
On average, respondents reported saving 72 minutes per day when working from home. Notably, workers in China and Japan experienced even more substantial time savings, with averages exceeding 100 minutes per day, while their American counterparts saved an average of 55 minutes when adopting remote work.
Factoring in the number of days per week spent working from home, the research team estimated that remote work conferred a time-saving benefit of two hours per worker per week throughout 2021 and 2022. Looking ahead, they project that this advantage will persist post-pandemic, albeit at a slightly reduced rate of approximately one hour per worker per week.
The findings underscore the tangible and enduring benefits of remote work arrangements in terms of time efficiency for employees across different nations and economies.
“For a full-time worker, that amounts to 2.2 percent of a 46-hour workweek (40 paid hours plus six hours of commuting),” the researchers write. “That’s a large time savings, especially when multiplied by hundreds of millions of workers around the world.”
The time saved from commuting represents just one aspect of the overall benefits observed from remote work. Alongside this, employees experience financial savings and reduce the time spent on grooming and preparation for their workday. Additionally, the researchers highlight that remote work grants greater flexibility in managing time throughout the day, fostering enhanced personal autonomy.
The study revealed some gender-specific trends, albeit described as modest by the researchers. Men tend to allocate slightly more of their time savings to work, with a mere 2.4 minutes more per day compared to women. In households with children under the age of 14, women devote an additional 11.4 minutes of their daily time savings to caregiving, while men allocate 9 minutes to the same task.
Demographic analysis reveals consistent commute times across different groups; however, the ability to work from home and avoid commuting is positively correlated with higher education levels and earnings, as indicated by the study findings.
According to the researchers’ findings, individuals anticipate saving approximately one hour per week on a continuous basis. These estimates, when applied to after-tax wages, serve as a pragmatic benchmark for assessing the private value of commute time savings.
