英文理解远程工作的主要决定因素及其在女性劳动力参与中的作用

PublicDisclosureAuthorizedPublicDisclosureAuthorized

PolicyResearchWorkingPaper10889

UnderstandingtheMainDeterminants

ofTeleworkandItsRoleinWomen’sLabor

ForceParticipation

GabrielaInchauste

MarielCeciliaSiravegna

WORLDBANKGROUP

PovertyandEquityGlobalPracticeSeptember2024

ReproducibleResearchRepository

Averifiedreproducibilitypackageforthispaperisavailableat

,clickherefordirectaccess.

PolicyResearchWorkingPaper10889

Abstract

Thispaperstudiesteleworkasanopportunitytoincreasewomen’slaborforceparticipationinMexico.Usingdataontheavailabilityanduseofinformationtechnologyinhouse-holds,thepapermodelswomen’slaborforceparticipationandworksitechoiceduringtheCOVID-19pandemic.Theresultsshowthatteleworkcanpotentiallyincreasefemalelaborforceparticipation,particularlyamongcollege-edu-catedwomen.Althoughthisisnotthelargestsegmentofwomenoutofthelaborforce,asmanyasoneinfivewomenwithhighereducationremainoutsidethelabormarketinMexico.Inaddition,thefindingsshowthatfamily

conditionsareacleardivideinlaborforcestatusbetweenmenandwomen,whereasage,education,andsocioeco-nomicstatusarenot.Caringforchildrenandlookingaftertheirhusbandsorpartnersseemstobearesponsibilitythataffectswomen’sdecisiontowork.Topromotefemalework-ers’engagementintheworkforce,policiesthatencouragepart-timeandhybridworkarrangements,alongwithwellthoughtoutchildandseniorcareprogramsandaccesstointernetinfrastructureneedtobeconsidered.Overall,bringingtheseworkersintothelaborforcewouldresultinproductivityandgrowthgainsforthecountry.

ThispaperisaproductofthePovertyandEquityGlobalPractice.ItispartofalargereffortbytheWorldBanktoprovideopenaccesstoitsresearchandmakeacontributiontodevelopmentpolicydiscussionsaroundtheworld.PolicyResearchWorkingPapersarealsopostedontheWebat

/prwp.Theauthorsmaybecontacted

atginchauste@andmsiravegna@.Averifiedreproducibilitypackageforthispaperisavailableat

,clickherefordirectaccess.

R

Y

C

I

L

R

A

E

S

E

O

P

H

C

S

TRANSPARENT

P

E

R

W

O

R

K

I

ANALYSIS

A

NGP

ThePolicyResearchWorkingPaperSeriesdisseminatesthefindingsofworkinprogresstoencouragetheexchangeofideasaboutdevelopmentissues.Anobjectiveoftheseriesistogetthefindingsoutquickly,evenifthepresentationsarelessthanfullypolished.Thepaperscarrythenamesoftheauthorsandshouldbecitedaccordingly.Thefindings,interpretations,andconclusionsexpressedinthispaperareentirelythoseoftheauthors.TheydonotnecessarilyrepresenttheviewsoftheInternationalBankforReconstructionandDevelopment/WorldBankanditsaffiliatedorganizations,orthoseoftheExecutiveDirectorsoftheWorldBankorthegovernmentstheyrepresent.

ProducedbytheResearchSupportTeam

UnderstandingtheMainDeterminantsofTeleworkandItsRoleinWomen’sLaborForceParticipation

GabrielaInchausteandMarielCecilia

Siravegna1

JELclassification:J08,J22

Keywords:laborforceparticipation,home-basedwork,laborforcedecision,careresponsibilities

1WewouldliketothankCarlosRodriguezCastelan,SamuelFreije-Rodriguez,andHugoNopoforhelpfulcommentsandsuggestions.

2

1.Introduction

TheCOVID-19pandemichasincreasedexistinggendergapsinMexico.Women’slaborforceparticipationdroppedmorethanmen’s,andwomen’sre-employmentslowed.AccordingtotheNationalInstituteofStatisticsandGeography(INEGI)inMexico,theparticipationrateinthefirsttrimesterof2020was76.4percentformenand45.1percentforwomen.Oneyearlater,women’sparticipationratedroppedbyalmostfourpercentagepointswhilemen’sdroppedtwopercentagepoints.

2

Atthesametime,approximately1.45millionfemaleworkershadnotreturnedtoworkoneyearlatercomparedwith0.6millionmaleworkers.

3

Socialdistancingmeasures,unanticipatedlockdowns,andthecollapseofin-personschoolinghavemadethepandemicharderforwomen,especiallythosewithhousehold,eldercare,andchildcareresponsibilities.Thesecircumstanceshavetranslatedintoaneedformoreflexibilityforwomeninallaspects.Informationandcommunicationtechnologies

4

haveplayedanessentialroleinincreasingthepossibilitiesforsomeworkerstoworkfromhome.

Teleworkingwascrucialformanywomentokeeptheirincomeandjobsandrelievetheirdoubleburdenofchildcareandhouseholdtasks(Berniell,Gasparini,Marchionni,&Viollaz,2021).DuringtheCOVID-19pandemic,93percentofemployedwomenwhoworkfromhomereportedhavingdonedomesticchorescomparedwith68percentofworkingmen.

5

Thisunequalburdenplaceswomeninaweakerpositionwithinthelabormarket(DominguezV.&BrownG.,2013)andismirroredinlaborforceparticipation,especiallybyagegroup.

Byfacilitatingtelework,workersareprovidedwiththeflexibilitytosettheirworkinghoursandengageinwork-lifebalancearrangements,savingcostandtime.Workingfromhomeinvolvesnotincurringfixedmonetarycosts,

6

suchaspublictransportation,andfixedtimecosts,suchascommutingtime(Edwards&Field-Hendrey,2002).Furthermore,itgivesadditionaltimetotheworkertoreconcileworkandcareresponsibilitiesashomeproductioncouldbedonejointly.

7

Moreover,teleworkcouldbeconducivetochoosingamoreconvenientchildcarearrangement,mainlywhenthereisalackoftrustinthechildcaresystem,asinthecaseofMexico(Muller&Jaen,2020).

AsschoolsstruggledtoreturntonormalduringtheCOVID-19pandemic,remoteworkhasbeenanopportunityformanyfamilieswhenchildcarewasunavailable.ThistypeofworkarrangementdidnothavealegalframeworkinMexicountilDecember2020,whenthegovernmentapprovedArticle311oftheFederalLawofWorktoregulateteleworkingconditions,obligations,andrights.TheHomeOfficelawconsidersactivitiesdoneattheworker’shomeformorethan40percentofthetimeandundertheemployer’sdirection.Aspartofthisagreement,theemployermustprovidetheworkerwithdevices

2Laborforceparticipationin2021Q1was41.7percentforwomenand74.2percentformen(ENOE,INEGI).

3In2020Q1,thenumberofworkerswas33.3millionformenand21.8millionforwomen.In2021Q1,32.7millionmenand20.3millionwomen.

4InMexico,therehasbeenanincreaseintheuseoftheinternetinthelastdecade.AccordingtotheENDUTIH,in2020,72percentofthepopulationusetheinternet.However,93.8percentuseittocommunicate,91percenttolookforinformation,and89percenttoaccessthesocialnetwork.

5INEGI,TelephoneSurveyonCOVID-19andtheLaborMarket(ECOVID-ML)July2020.

6Intheliteratureonlabormarkets,fixedcostsarethosethatdonotvarywiththenumberofhoursapersonworks.

7Apioneeringpaper,Edwards&Field-Hendrey(2002)proposedthatflexibleworkenableswomentobetterintegrateemploymentandfamilyroles.

3

neededtoteleworkandpayfortelecommunicationservicessuchastheinternetandtheproportionalcostofelectricityusedforteleworkpurposes,amongotherbenefits.

8

Onebenefitofteleworkisthepossibilitythatworkerscanbetterbalancethedemandsofpaidemploymentandunpaidhouseholdwork.However,digitalskillsandaccesstotechnologicalequipmentarenotanoptionformanyemployeesinMexico,inparticularwomen.Womenandmendonothavethesameopportunities,uses,andaccesstotechnology.Accordingtothe2020ENDUTIHsurvey,

9

19percentofwomendidnotknowhowtouseacomputerin2020comparedwith15percentofmeninthesamesituation.Moreover,notallMexicanscanaffordthecostofacomputer.Forinstance,onlyone-eighthofwomenknewhowtouseacomputerbutdonothaveaccess,unlikeone-ninthofmen.

10

Inthispaper,weaimtocontributetounderstandingwomen’slaborforceandworkplacedecisionsinemergingeconomiesbystudyingthecharacteristicsofteleworkersinMexicoduringtheCOVID-19pandemic,distinguishingbetweenbeinganemployeeorbeingself-employed.WeusedatafromtheNationalSurveyonAvailabilityandUseofInformationTechnologyinHouseholds(ENDUTIH)carriedoutin2020toestimatetheextenttowhichteleworkcaninfluencelaborsupplydecisions.Weestimatetheprobabilityformenandwomentochoosebetweenfivestates:outofthelaborforce,workingon-sitesalaried,workingon-siteself-employed,teleworkingsalaried,orteleworkingself-employedusingamultinomialframework.

Ourpaperdiffersfromearlierempiricalworkonworkplacechoice

11

asitfocusesontelework,adoptinganarrowerdefinitionofworkingathome,whichconsidersusingcomputersforworkathomeanddiscriminatesbetweenself-employedandsalariedworkers.Moreover,thispaperadoptsamicroperspectivetounderstandwhatcharacteristicsdeterminetelework.Wearguetherearetwofactorsatplay:first,theexistenceoffixedcoststoworkingon-site,andsecond,thepossibilityofengaginginthejointproductionofincomeandhouseholdwork.

Inaddition,wecontributetotheliteraturebyconsideringnotonlythemonetaryandtimecostsofworking,butalsothepotentialemotionalcostsofgoingtoworkandleavingachildorlovedoneinthecareofothers.Previousliteraturedidnotconsidertheemotionalcoststhatworkersmayfeelwhenleavingtheirdependentstosomeoneelse’scare,includingguilt,anxiety,anduncertainty.Muller&Jaen(2020)showevidencethatthesefeelingsarisefromsocialgendernormsandaffectwomen’sdesiretoworkinfavorofcaringfortheirchildren.Asaresult,laborforceparticipationdecisionsshouldaccount

8Thislawgivesemployees9newrights:(1)receiveequipmentnecessarytoperformthejob(computer,ergonomicchairs,printers,amongothers),(2)receiveworkandsalarypaymentinatimelymannerandonstipulateddates,(3)receivecompensationforthecostsderivedfromworkingathomesuchasinternetandelectricityservicecharges,(4)mechanismsthatpreservethesecurityofinformationanddatausedbyworkers,(5)therighttodisconnectattheendoftheworkingday,(6)balanceofworkandfamilyresponsibilities,(7)receivetraining,(8)receivesocialsecurity,and(9)genderperspectivesthatreconcilepersonallifeandavailabilityofworkers.

9NationalSurveyonAvailabilityandUseofInformationTechnologyinHouseholds,ENDUTIH2020,undertakenbyINEGI.

10Thesetoftechnologicalskillsisdifferentforwomenandmenacrossthesamelevelofeducation.Womenatthecollegelevelhavesimilarorgreatercompetenceinallthecapacitiesrelatedtodigitaltechnologies,butthatisnottruewithmorecomplexcomputerskills.Forexample,abilitiessuchascreatingaspreadsheetorgeneratingandusingadatabasearemainlydominatedbymeninallthedifferentlevelsofeducationENDUTIH(2020).

11Earlierworkhaddefinedalltypesofhome-basedwork,withoutfocusontheimpactoftelework(DominguezV.&BrownG.,2013).

4

forthetrade-offbetweenwomen’scareeraspirationsandtraditionalgenderrolesassociatedwithmotherhood.

Inthiscontext,wetesttheimplicitassumptionthatteleworkisanattractiveoptionforwomenwhofacehighfixedcostsofworkingawayfromhome.

12

Ourresultsshowthatwomenwithhighereducationaremorelikelytojointlygeneratehousehold(i.e.,carefordependents)andworkproductionwhenworkingfromhome,providinganincentivetoremaininthelaborforce.Thiseffectismostsignificantforcollege-educatedwomen,thushavingthepotentialtoencouragehighlyproductivewomentoparticipate.Notsurprisingly,collegeeducationisconnectedtoahighreductionintheprobabilityofstayingathome.Interestingly,amongmen,thecaseissimilarregardingteleworkingbutnotregardingstayingathome.Indeed,wefindthatfamilycharacteristicsdividethelaborforcestatusbetweenmenandwomen,whereasage,education,andsocioeconomicstatusdonot.Almostallwomenarelesslikelytoparticipateinthelabormarketiftherearechildreninthehouseholdoriftheyaremarried/partnered;whereasallmeninthesegroupsaremorelikelytoparticipateunderthesecircumstances.

Teleworkcanhelpwomenwithdependentsstayinemploymentandpotentiallyincreasefemalelaborforceparticipationandoveralllaborproductivity.Teleworkingcouldhelpwomenwithsmallchildrenandcollegeeducationtokeepworking,butoncechildrenareabove3yearsold,educationdoesnotmaketeleworkingmorelikely.Indeed,wefindthatteleworkisnotasubstituteforreliablechildcare,soadditionalpoliciesonthisfrontareneeded.Withtheseinsights,theuseofteleworkshouldbeseenasatoolforworkplaceflexibilitythatcansupportwomenwithcaregivingresponsibilities.Ithastheadvantageofeliminatingthetimerequiredtocommuteandexpandingwomen’schoicesfordependentcare,suchason-sitecarecentersaswellashome-basedsupervisionorchildcarearrangements,whichmaybemorecost-effectiveorconvenientforthefamily.

Thispaperisstructuredasfollows:Section2reviewstheexistingliteraturerelatedtoworkfromhomeandgender.Section3presentsthetheoreticalframeworkusedtoexplainwomen’schoicesrelatedtowhereandhowtowork.Section4detailsthedataandexplainstheempiricalmethodology.Section5presentstheresultsofthemultinomialmodelforwomen,andwecomparedthemwithmen.Section6brieflydiscussesthepolicyimplicationandconcludes.

2.RelatedLiterature

Theincreaseintheuseofinformationtechnologyinthelastdecadehasshapedthelabormarket.Oneexampleofthatisteleworking.Thisworkarrangementenablespeopletoworkfromhomeandthepossibilityofcombiningworkwithhomeresponsibilities.DuringtheCOVID-19pandemic,thegovernment-mandatedlockdowninevitablybroughtnegativeconsequencestothelabormarket,whilehavingmorepronouncedeffectsonwomenasschoolclosuresheightenedtheirhouseholdresponsibilities.Forinstance,46percentofwomenreporthavingexperiencedanincreaseinchildcareresponsibilitiesduringthepandemiccomparedto30percentofmen(WorldBankHighFrequencyHouseholdSurvey,2021).Throughoutthattime,teleworkmayhavebeentheeasiestwaytocarefor

12Edwards&Field-Hendrey(2002)explainthattheattractivenessisgivenbythepossibilityofcombiningunpaiddomesticworkwithgainfulhome-basedemployment.

5

childrenwhilesimultaneouslygeneratingincome,particularlyforhouseholdswithinternetaccessandinoccupationsamenabletoremotework.

HeggenessandSuri(2021)studytheimpactofchildcareresponsibilitiesonmotherswhoteleworkintheUnitedStates.Theycomparehowmothers’laborforceparticipationdecreasedrelativetoprime-agewomenwithoutchildrenandprime-agecustodialfathers.Theyfindthatflexibleworkhelpstoincreasewomen’slaborsupply.AsBaruch(2001)remarksinhispaper,teleworkingenlargestheemployer’slabormarketasmorepeoplecanbehired(i.e.singleparents,secondearnerswithchildren,peoplewholiveinremoteplaces,etc.).Moreover,inanotherquantitativestudy,Baruch(2001)foundthatteleworkingwastheonlyoptiontoworkforworkingmotherswithyoungchildrenathome.ChungandvadderHorst(2018)findthataflexiblearrangementforwomenafterchildbirthhelpsthemsustaintheiremploymentstatus.

Inthesameline,Bernieletal.(2021)usemicrodatafromtheWorldBank’shigh-frequencyphonehouseholdsurveydata(HFPS)toanalyzethefactorsthataccountfortheasymmetricimpactoftheCOVID-19inLatinAmerica.Theylookatheterogeneitiesbyoccupationsandconstructpotentialworkfromhomemeasuresforeachindividualtoestimatedifferentlaboroutcomes.Inlinewithpriorstudies,theyfindthattheimpactoftheCOVID-19shockwasharderforwomen,buttheabilitytoworkfromhomemitigatedtheadverseeffect,particularlyforwomenwithchildren.ApossiblemechanismbehindtheirresultsisthatwomeninLatinAmericancountriesaremorelikelytoberesponsibleforfamilyandhomecare;therefore,theyaremorelikelytostayathometocareforthechildrenfollowingschoolclosures.Indeed,theyalsofoundevidencethatwomenwhowereabletoworkfromhomeweremorelikelytokeeptheirjobs.

Concerningtheeffectoftheinternetonwomen’slaborforceparticipation,Dettling(2017)findsapositiveimpactofhigh-speedinternetuseonthelaborsupplydecisionsofmarriedwomenbyabout4.1percentagepoints.Thisconclusiondoesnotholdformenorsinglewomen,forwhomhigh-speedinternetdoesnothaveanimpactontheirlaborsupplydecisions.

Beyondtheuseofteleworktorefertothedecisionofwhereandhowtowork;thereisamuchlongerliteraturethatconsiderstocostsandbenefitsofparticipatinginthelabormarketasthebasisforwomen’sdecisiontowork.Forinstance,Cogan(1981)analyzesthelaborsupplyfactorstoexplainthedesirednumberofhoursapersonwillchoosetowork.Heshowsthatthefixedcostsofworkingarewhypeoplechoosetoworkveryfewhours.Usingdatafromthe1967NationalLongitudinalSurveyonMatureWomen,heconsideredmarriedwomenbetween30to34yearsoldandconsideredvariablessuchasthenumberofyoungchildren,husband’searnings,andindividualcharacteristicssuchasthelevelofeducationandage.Hefindsthepresenceofchildrenraisesfixedcostsbyaboutone-third.

Cogan(1981)’soriginalideaoffixedcostshasbeenmodifiedbyEdwardsandField-Hendrey(2002)todistinguishhome-basedwork.TheyusedatafromthePublicUseMicrodataSamples(PUMS)tomodelwomen’sdecisionsonlaborforceparticipationandtheworkplaceintheUS,takingintoaccountspecificworkertypes,suchasself-employedandemployees.Theyfindthatwomenwhohaveahighcostofworking(i.e.,livinginaruralarea,havingyoungchildren,etc.)haveahigherprobabilityofworkingfromhomeandbeingself-employed.

Inthispaper,weuseEdwardsandField-Hendrey’s(2002)frameworktostudythecharacteristicsofworkerswhowereabletoteleworkinMexicoduringtheCOVID-19pandemic.Fromanefficiencypointofview,wearguethatthebenefitsoflesstimeandmoneyspentcommutingandmoretimewiththefamilyaffectworkers’decisionsonwhereandhowtowork.Ourpapercomplementstheliteraturethatexamines

6

flexibilityasatoolthathelpsworkerstoremaininthelabormarketusingthetheoreticalframeworkofthefixedcostofworking.Asteleworkingdoesnotfitalltheskillslevels,weproviderelevantevidencetocharacterizewomenwhomaybethebestfitforteleworkingconsideringdifferenttypesoffixedcostsintheirdecisionofhowandwheretowork.

3.TheoreticalFramework

Neoclassicalmodelsputforwardtworeasonsthatexplainwhymenandwomendecidetoworkfromhome:(i)thereisafixedcostwhenworkingon-site,and(ii)itispossibletoengageinthejointproductionofworkandhouseholdoutputs(Rani&Unni,2009;Edwards&Field-Hendrey,2002).

Fixedcostsofworkingmayvaryacrossindividualsandcanbeclassifiedintothreetypes.Thereare“timefixedcosts”suchasthelossofleisureorhouseholdproductionactivitiesduetocommutingtime,“monetarycosts”suchasthepricepaidforworkclothing,childcare,ortransportation,andlastly,“emotionalfixedcosts”suchasthestressassociatedwithhavingajob,leavingalovedonesuchasachild,adisabledorelderlyfamilymemberinsomeoneelse’scare,andthestressassociatedwithnotbeingabletofulfillbothworkandhouseholdresponsibilities.

WestartbyfollowingEdwardsandField-Hendrey(2002),whomodifiedtheCogan(1981)modeltoexplainworkers’decisiontoworkathome,on-site,oroutofthelaborforce.Theirmodelconsidersthefixedcostsofworkingiftheemployeedecidestoworkon-siteandajointhouseholdproductionfunctioniftheworkerdecidestoundertakehome-basedwork.Forexample,theycookandcareforyoungchildrenoranolderadultwhileworkingremotely.

Thehigherthefixedcoststhepersonfaces,thehigherthereservationwage.Forinstance,forsomewomen,thefixedcostscouldbehighenoughtochoosetostayathomeandoutofthelaborforce.Thetheoreticalmodelisillustratedin

Figure1

,whereL*representsthetotaltimeavailable,thenonlaborincome

13

isN,FCTandFCMrepresentthetimeandmonetarycostofworkingon-site,respectively.WeaddemotionalcostasFECtothemodelfollowingMuller&Jaen(2020)findingsforMexicoCity.Weassumethatindividualsmaybewillingtopayanamountofmoneytoreduceorlimitthesecosts.Fromthispointofview,emotionalcostsaremodeledasalumpsum.Inaddition,inlinewithEdwardsandField-Hendrey(2002),wetreatthechoiceofemployeeorself-employmentastheoptiontochoosebetweentwowageoffersineachworksite(oneforbeinganemployeeandtheotherforself-employed,selectingthehigherofthetwoalternatives).

13Examplesofnon-laborincomeareinvestmentsandtransfersincomeamongotherincomesthatarenotacquiredinthelabormarket.

7

Figure1:Modeloflaborsupplybytheworksite

Source:EdwardsandField-Hendrey,2002

Inaddition,weassumethatwomenwhoworkfromhomehavealowerreservationwagethanwomenwhoworkon-site,inlinewithlowerfixedcosts.ThelatterassumptioncomesfromCogan(1981),whodemonstratesthatthefixedcostsofworkingraisesthereservationwagecomparedtotheabsenceoffixedcosts.

14

AsEdwardsandField-Hendrey(2002)explain,thereisalsoadifferenceinthewageofferedbetweenthesetwotypesofworkplaces.Iftherewerenot,theopportunitysetforon-siteworkwouldbepartoftheopportunitysetforahome-basedposition.

15

WomenwhoteleworkwillreceiveWhplusHasasalary.Thisamountconsiderstheeconomicvalueofhomeproductionperhourofworkingfromhome,H(EdwardsandField-Hendrey,2002).Atthesametime,womenwhoworkon-sitereceiveWosalary.Givenlowerfixedcostswhenworkingfromhome,thewageofferedWhwillbelowerthanthewageofferedforworkingon-site(Wo)toelicitthesameamountoflaborsupply.Then,theirindifferencecurvemapwilldeterminewhichsegmentofthebudgetconstraintABCDtheymaylocateand,therefore,theirchoicerelatedtohowandwheretowork.

Theoptimalchoiceiswhentheindifferencecurveofthewomanistangenttothebudgetconstraint.ThispointcouldbelocatedatpointB,wherethewomen’schoiceistobeoutofthelaborforce,andshedoes

14Inaddition,Winkler(2020)explainsthatthereservationwageisthewageatwhichapersoniswillingtoenterthelabormarket,whichinturnisaffectedbythepresenceofchildreninthehouseholdandtheavailabilityofmarketsubstitutesforhouseholdproduction.Dominguez&Brown,(2013)notethatwomenworkingfromhomecombinehouseholdresponsibilitieswiththeirmarket-basedemploymentjob,leadingtoalowerreservationwagethanforemploymentoutsidethehome.

15Inorderforthistobetrue,thefixedcostofremoteworkhastobelowerthanon-sitework.Inaddition,(Edwards&Field-Hendrey,2002)mentionsthattherearefactorsthatimplyalowerwageofferforhome-basedworkerssuchasnoallthejobscanbedoneathome.Additionally,employersmaybelievethatthemarginalproductoftheworkerscouldbelowergiventhefewerinteractionsamongcolleaguesandthelackordifficultyofmonitoring.

8

notsupplyanyhoursofwork.IftheutilityfunctionistangenttoanypointonthesegmentCD,thedecisionwillbetoworkon-siteandteleworkingforthesegmentBC.

Basically,thedifferencebetweenon-siteworkandteleworkingisthepresenceoffixedcostsassociatedwithworkingon-siteandthepossibilityofgettingsomehouseholdworkdonewhileteleworking.ThefixedcostsareshownintheslopeofthelineDE.Thehigherthefixedcost,thefurthertotheleftwillbethesegmentcorrespondingtoworkingon-site(DC).ThejointproductionisshownintheslopeofthelineFB;thehigherthejointproduction,thefurthertotherightwillbethesegmentCBassociatedwithhome-basedwork.

Givenourmodel,weexpectthatwomenfacinghigherfixedcostsaremorelikelytoworkfromhomeorstayoutofthelaborforce.Thenthequestionis,whatcharacteristicsmakeawomanmorelikelytoteleworkinsteadofbeingoutofthelaborforce?Weaimtoshedsomelightonthisquestionintheempiricalexercisediscriminatingbetweenself-employedandsalariedworkers.Workersmaydifferintheircharacteristicssuchasmotivation,abilityorentrepreneurialaptitudeandthereforetheirdecisiontoworkfromhomeoron-site.

Theprecedinganalysisfocusesonthesupplyoflabor,ignoringthefactthattheremaybenodemandforat-homeworkforsomeoccupations.Theevidenceshowsthattherearedifferentdemandsforteleworkacrosssectors

16

andoccupations.

17

Thereisagroupofworkerswhowillbeunabletoworkremotelyeveniftheywantedit.Workersinsectorslikeservices,retailtrade,andwholesale,maynothavetheoptiontoworkon-site.Moreover,somefirmcharacteristicsmayexplaintheneedforon-siteand/orhome-basedworkers.Giventherequirementsofface-to-faceinteraction,digitalaccess,andthetechnologyintensityoftheproductionprocess,

18

firmscanadoptteleworkifaminimumleveloftechnologicalandorganizationprovisionsaremet(Tokarchuk,Gabriele,&Neglia,2021).

Ingeneral,firmswithemployeesthataremoreskilledandwithgreaterexperiencearemorelikelytouseteleworking.AccordingtoBrussevich,Dabla-Norris,&Khalid(2020)Mexicohasthelowesttele-workabilityscoresmakingMexicanworkersmoreeconomicallyvulnerable.Forinstance,ahighshareofworkerswithlow