Remote Work Persisting and Trending Permanent

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Forty-five percent of full-time U.S. employees worked from home either all (25%) or part of the time (20%) in Gallup's September update of its monthly employment trends. These figures are unchanged from remote working rates in July and August, signaling that U.S. companies' return-to-office plans remain on hold.

Given the high proportion of white-collar jobs traditionally done in an office, the remote rate among these workers is particularly noteworthy. Two-thirds of employees in white-collar jobs (67%) reported working from home either exclusively (41%) or some of the time (26%) in September,

As with the rate of remote work among all full-time employees, remote working among white-collar workers has been steady in recent months. However, the percentage has dwindled since January's 79% as the vaccination rate among Americans has increased, giving more people the confidence and freedom to return to the office.