There has been a large increase in the share of office job ads that mention remote work since before the pandemic. Shown in the chart below is the change in online job ads mentioning remote work between the weeks before the pandemic and the weeks ending in June 2021. Using a 16-week moving average of daily online job ads, computer related and finance and insurance occupations exhibited the largest increase in remote work opportunites. Many management occupations have also experienced large increases in remote work job ads. Many high skill occupations in these job categories had relativiely higher rates of remote work pre-pandemic, allowing for a quicker transition to full time remote once the pandemic hit.

Lower skill office jobs including office support and clerical occupations also experienced significant growth in job ads mentioning remote work. Before the pandemic, clerical/admin office workers were less likely to work from home. A large percentage of these workers are hourly/non-exempt (eligible for over-time pay), which creates complications in a remote work environment. The COVID-19 pandemic appears to have diminished these barriers as lockdowns forced companies to deal with these issues. A more permanent shift to remote work appears likely for these jobs.

Remote work options are mentioned more often in job ads for certain occupations