The Pros and Cons of Remote Work
• Access to remote work is not equal.
The ability to telecommute disproportionately belongs to higher-income, white-collar workers who are predominantly white and male. Those with poor access to housing and high-speed internet or who experience unsafe situations such as domestic violence cannot readily work remotely.
• Remote work has mixed effects on well-being.
It can reduce stress and exposure to microaggressions, increase motivation and job satisfaction, and allow for more time spent with family. However, it can also contribute to increased exhaustion, feelings of loneliness and isolation and other mental health challenges, particularly during crises such as the pandemic, and especially for people with caregiving responsibilities.
• Remote work can increase work-family conflict without other supports in place to prevent it.
Primary caregivers, who tend to be women, may particularly experience an erosion of boundaries between work and care responsibilities while working from home, leading to an unsustainable amount of paid and unpaid work. This comes about partly because of gender norms and stereotypes that result in women taking on disproportionate domestic and care work when compared to men.
• Remote work increases economic opportunity, such as by allowing workers with other responsibilities such as caregiving to remain in the workforce and by allowing workers to move to less expensive regions.
However, although many workers of different social identities use flexible work arrangements, women and racialized people tend to experience disproportionate stigma and bias for using them, resulting in significant career penalties such as wage reductions and fewer promotions.
• The impact of remote work on the environment is equivocal.
Although an increase in remote work has the direct effect of reducing carbon emissions due to reduced commuting, increased energy use in homes, increased car use due to workers moving away from urban locales and other indirect impacts may negate reduced emissions.