Panel Paper:
The Changing Nature of Work: The Relationship Between Remote Work and Income in Washington, DC
Saturday, March 30, 2019
Butler Pavilion - Butler Board Room (American University)
*Names in bold indicate Presenter
The nature of work has been rapidly evolving in recent years, especially in post-industrial
settings. With ubiquitous high-speed internet and high-capacity computing power, people are
increasingly able to work outside of conventional office settings, allowing for more flexibility,
comfort, less need for density and economies of scale, and increased worker productivity. It
remains unclear, however, what is driving the remote working trend and who will benefit. In
this paper, I use a series of regression models to estimate the relationship between median income and
the total number of remote workers among Census tracts in Washington, DC. Using a preferred
spatial lag model that weights neighbors' connectivity with socioeconomic fixed effects, I find
that for every $100 increase in a neighborhood's median income, it is predicted there will be one
additional remote worker per neighborhood cluster. This finding has implications for a growing
trend that promises convenience, flexibility, and cost-effectiveness, but at present appears to
favor wealthier populations.
settings. With ubiquitous high-speed internet and high-capacity computing power, people are
increasingly able to work outside of conventional office settings, allowing for more flexibility,
comfort, less need for density and economies of scale, and increased worker productivity. It
remains unclear, however, what is driving the remote working trend and who will benefit. In
this paper, I use a series of regression models to estimate the relationship between median income and
the total number of remote workers among Census tracts in Washington, DC. Using a preferred
spatial lag model that weights neighbors' connectivity with socioeconomic fixed effects, I find
that for every $100 increase in a neighborhood's median income, it is predicted there will be one
additional remote worker per neighborhood cluster. This finding has implications for a growing
trend that promises convenience, flexibility, and cost-effectiveness, but at present appears to
favor wealthier populations.
