As Businesses Shut, How Many U.S. Workers Can Work From Home?

The coronavirus pandemic is prompting many businesses across the country to close their offices, forcing their employees to work from home. One problem: A majority of US workers don’t have jobs that easily enable them to work from home, the federal government says. According to a March 2019 survey by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, only 7% of US workers are in an occupation where they spend a portion of their work schedule at home or at another approved location other than their office. According to that definition, 9.8 million workers have a formal flexible-workplace agreement under normal circumstances, and an additional 130 million American workers don’t. Those earning higher salaries are more likely to be able to work remotely. Nearly a quarter of those in the highest income bracket have flexible workplaces; among the lowest-paid workers, just 1%.