The 2017 State of Telecommuting in the U.S. Employee Workforce report has been released by FlexJobs and Global Workplace Analytics. This report is the most up-to-date and comprehensive data analysis available on the state of telecommuting in the United States, and includes recent trends. Among the report’s significant findings: the number of people telecommuting in the U.S. increased 115% between 2005 and 2015. 
Key findings of the 2017 State of Telecommuting in the U.S. Employee Workforce report include:
- 9 million U.S. employees, or 2.9% of the total U.S. workforce, work from home at least half of the time, up from 1.8 million in 2005 (a 115 % increase since 2005).
- The average telecommuter is 46 years of age or older, has at least a bachelor’s degree, and earns a higher median salary than an in-office worker.
- Roughly the same population of women and men telecommute.
- Telecommuting is more common among employees over 35 years of age and most common among Baby Boomers.
- In more than half of the top U.S. metro areas, telecommuting exceeds public transportation as the commute option of choice. It has grown far faster than any other commute mode.
“Telecommuting offers compelling benefits for economic and job growth while also better addressing current societal, environmental, and infrastructure challenges stemming from our current workforce norm,” said Sara Sutton Fell, Founder and CEO of FlexJobs. “And while more companies are acknowledging this formally, this data confirms what we’ve been observing at FlexJobs for the past ten years, which is that more and more companies—whether they’re private, public, nonprofit, or start-up—have recognized the bottom-line benefits of telecommuting and are increasingly incorporating this type of flexible work arrangement into their business strategies,” Sutton Fell concluded.
The 2017 State of Telecommuting in the U.S. Employee Workforce report includes information on the following:
- Trends in the telecommuting workforce over the last 10 years
- Demographics of the average telecommuter (age, gender, education, salary)
- Telecommuting by industry, occupation, and sector
- Telecommuting by metro area (prevalence and growth)
- Actual and potential economic and environmental impact of telecommuting
“The trend is unmistakable. Leading employers are cashing in on the people, planet, and profit benefits of allowing their people to choose where they want to work,” said Kate Lister, President of Global Workplace Analytics.
For more information, or to view the full report, click here.
In an age where emails, calls and texts can all be tracked, it’s less important to report to an office on a daily basis. This also opens up a wider talent pool, as forward thinking employers already know.