Blog Post

By: Mallory Bateman

Note: The opinions expressed are those of the author alone and do not reflect an institutional position of the Gardner Institute. We hope the opinions shared contribute to the marketplace of ideas and help people as they formulate their own INFORMED DECISIONS™.

The Census Bureau recently released a blog that provides national insights into the population who switched to telework during the pandemic. In partnership with other federal agencies, the Census Bureau created the Household Pulse Survey to gain insights into how Americans are experiencing the coronavirus pandemic. Their findings were that “Households with members who teleworked more frequently reported higher levels of income and education and better health than those in which no one changed their typical in-person work in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Do Utah’s new teleworkers reflect these same characteristics?

Utah has been in the top 5 states for the largest share of teleworkers since the question began to be asked. The share of teleworking adults over 18 has ranged from 45.6% to 52.7% during this time, those who “substituted some or all of their typical in-person work for telework because of the coronavirus pandemic.” While the national blog provides a household-level perspective, the population considered here is adults over age 18.

In the most recent data, Utah workers between ages 25 and 39 represented over around 30% of the workforce, but over one-third (37%) of teleworkers.

In Utah, as in the nation, adults with higher household incomes were more likely to have switched to telework. Over 70% of Utahns with household income above $100,000 switched to telework, around 40% of Utahns with household incomes of less than $75,000 switched.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Household Pulse Survey, Week 27 (March 17-29).

 

When considering educational attainment, Utah followed the national trend of those with higher educational attainment being more likely to telework. Those with a Bachelor’s degree or higher make up the largest share (41%) of those who switched to telework, but are around 31% of Utahns reporting their educational attainment.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Household Pulse Survey, Week 27 (March 17-29).

 

Health status was reported in connection to telework in responses during Phase 2 (August 19 to October 26). Again, like the nation, on average the majority of teleworking Utahns reported health status as good or better.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Household Pulse Survey, Average of Phase 2 responses

 

In the Census Bureau story, they mention that “[c]hanging telework patterns have been a major feature of the COVID-19 pandemic, as many workers transitioned from commuting to a workplace to working from home.

However, even outside of the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, income, education, and health are closely correlated and their relationship to telework is one of a wide array of social and economic outcomes of interest to researchers and policymakers.”

These broad trends are evident in Utah. Industries where teleworking is not an option, like tourism, arts and entertainment, or food services, have seen significant job losses throughout the pandemic. Frontline health care and other essential service workers cannot do their jobs via telework. Hundreds of thousands of women, who might have the option to telework, have left the labor force due to being the essential workers within their homes. While telework has provided half of Utahns the opportunity to distance themselves, half of our workforce has not had that option.

For additional Utah insights from the Household Pulse Survey, visit the Gardner Household Pulse Data Tool.

Mallory Bateman is a senior research analyst and Utah State Data Center coordinator at the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute.