Report: Illinoisans Who Telecommute Save Nearly Five Hours Per Week

From The Center Square:

By Cole Lauterbach

Illinoisans who shifted to telecommuting have reclaimed nearly five hours of their lives each week.

Pandemic-induced economic shutdowns forced hundreds of thousands of workers to telecommute, emptying trains and thinning out rush hour traffic nationwide.

About 1 in 4 employed people teleworked or worked from home for pay because of the coronavirus pandemic, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics data from July. That’s a decline from May, when nearly one-third of the workforce was working from home, not counting those who already were.

CoPilot, a car shopping app, analyzed pre-pandemic commuter data from the U.S. Census and found Illinoisans spent an average of 4.9 hours commuting to and from work every week, working more than 43 hours.

“The analysis found that Illinois workers spent 11.3% of their workweek on their commute prior to the pandemic,” the report stated. “Among workers of all U.S. states, Illinois workers have gained the 6th most time back from their commutes by working from home.”

Predictably, workers in the Chicago area saved more time telecommuting than those from other areas of the state. The study found workers in Chicago’s metropolitan area saved 13 percent of their time by not making the trek into work, second only to New York City.

The economic ramifications of more than 38 million people working remotely had massive implications on the economy, with many service sector companies that relied on foot traffic suffering losses if they weren’t forced into closure entirely.

The trend could continue. A Brookings study found that workers would take an 8 percent pay cut to work from home.

Public services that rely on steady worker traffic have also suffered due to the large shift in telecommuting. Metra, the Chicago-based rail line responsible for hauling workers from the suburbs into the city, said in June that COVID-19 will cost the agency an estimated $605 million through 2021.

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