News

In 2019, only 4.8% of employees worked remotely from home, while currently one out of three telework due to COVID-19

Spain was among the European countries with the lowest levels of telework, with only 4.8% of employees working from home in 2019, although 22.3% of workers had the means to accomplish it. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many have suddenly been forced to adopt a work-from-home policy. In fact, 34% of workers claim to be teleworking, according to the survey on the impact of COVID-19 carried out by the Valencian Regional Government between the end of March and beginning of April 2020. This launch into remote work that has taken place unexpectedly in an improvised and unplanned manner, prevents it, at the moment, from reaching the levels of efficiency and productivity it could achieve. Even so, telework has allowed firms and people to continue working and to stop the stampeding spread of the pandemic.

As explained by José María Peiró and Angel Soler in the new COVID-19: IvieExpress, more is needed for telework to be effective and productive, as it requires reorganization and adaptation of work systems and processes and a learning effort by workers who are new to this mode of work. To make full use of the benefits of remote work, firms and workers need to make changes beyond those that have taken place under these exceptional circumstances.