Report Explores the Prevalence of Remote and Hybrid Work in the U.S.

What’s the state of American workplace arrangements? A report released Thursday, June 25, by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) provided a data-backed vantage point.

The report, which was based on the responses from the annual American Time Use Survey, showed remote and hybrid work arrangements remain firmly entrenched, with:

• 35% of polled Americans doing some or all of their work at home on days they worked; and,
• 70% of respondents performing some or all of their tasks on-site at their workplace.

These bullet points highlight the widespread adoption of flexible, split-location schedules across the nation’s economy.

How Gender and Education Factor into Remote Work

The BLS data revealed clear demographic divisions in who utilizes remote work options. Women continue to outpace men in working from home, with 38% of employed women doing home-based work on their workdays, compared to 31% of employed men.

Educational attainment remained the single-largest predictor of workplace flexibility. Among professionals aged 25 and older, individuals with a bachelor’s degree or higher are far more likely to work remotely. A commanding 51% of college-educated workers performed some or all of their duties from home, versus a mere 19% for workers who hold lower levels of education.

What the Data Shows About Work Hours, Workdays

Additional findings from the report called out Americans’ weekly work hours and tendencies to work outside of a Monday-to-Friday routine.

The data showed that for full-time employed individuals, the average workday lasted 8.1 hours. This time investment varied heavily by the day of the week, averaging 8.5 hours on weekdays and dropping to 5.5 hours on weekend days.

The vast majority of the U.S. workforce remains bound to the traditional workday schedule:

• 81% of employed Americans logged hours on an average weekday (Monday through Friday).
• 30% performed work on an average Saturday and/or Sunday.

The survey uncovered an inverse relationship between education levels and hours logged on weekends. Among individuals who worked weekend shifts, those with less formal education logged significantly more hours:

• High school graduates with no college background spent an average of 6.4 hours working on weekend days.
• Those with a bachelor’s degree or higher averaged four hours of work on weekend days.

Editor’s Note: Additional Content

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