Working from home in the midst of COVID-19: occupations and performance Evidence from Hungary

Abstract

In the world of strict measures against the COVID-19 pandemic including stay-at-home orders and lockdowns, working from home was part of the solutions to keep the economy running. In this paper we construct a simple measure of working from home potential using CEDEFOP’s Skills Panorama data and test its relevance on survey data obtained during March-April 2020 in Hungary. Furthermore, we argue that even if working from home is possible, due to adverse factors it might not be the same in terms of performance as working under normal conditions. We present evidence from a sample of employees with tertiary education that this is indeed the case, highlighting the positive effect of previous remote work experience and the impact of changes in the nature of tasks to be done. This question is important for the long term as well: if working from home is perceived as decreasing employee performance in this situation it might hinder its future widespread adaptation as well. However, if we understand the factors influencing performance in this situation, we can find simple remedies.