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Who can work from home? The roles of job tasks and HRM practices

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  • Kawaguchi, Daiji
  • Motegi, Hiroyuki

Abstract

This paper examines the characteristics of remote work using a unique Japanese survey dataset that provides information on engagement in remote work together with the specific job tasks and human resource management (HRM) characteristics workers face. We show that the opportunity to work remotely was more likely to be available to those engaged in non-routine tasks as well as to workers subject to HRM practices presupposing that worker performance is measurable. The implications of these findings for income transfer policies and management practices in light of the COVID-19 pandemic are also discussed.

Suggested Citation

  • Kawaguchi, Daiji & Motegi, Hiroyuki, 2021. "Who can work from home? The roles of job tasks and HRM practices," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jjieco:v:62:y:2021:i:c:s0889158321000411
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jjie.2021.101162
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    Cited by:

    1. Jun Hyung Kim & Yu Kyung Koh & Jinseong Park, 2023. "Mental Health Consequences of Working from Home during the Pandemic," Global Economic Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 52(1), pages 18-50, January.
    2. Chijioke O Nwosu & Umakrishnan Kollamparambil & Adeola Oyenubi, 2022. "Socio-economic inequalities in ability to work from home during the coronavirus pandemic," The Economic and Labour Relations Review, , vol. 33(2), pages 290-307, June.
    3. Hiromi Hara & Daiji Kawaguchi, "undated". "A Positive Outcome of COVID-19? The Effects of Work from Home on Gender Attitudes and Household Production," Bank of Japan Working Paper Series 22-E-2, Bank of Japan.
    4. Jiang, Mingyu & Yasui, Kengo & Yugami, Kazufumi, 2024. "Working from home, job tasks, and productivity," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(8).
    5. Tanaka, Kiyoyasu, 2023. "What hinders digital communication? Evidence from foreign firms in Japan," Japan and the World Economy, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    6. Kambayashi, Ryo & Ohyama, Atsushi, 2025. "Work from Home, Management, and Technology," IZA Discussion Papers 17668, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    7. Masayuki Morikawa, 2023. "Productivity dynamics of remote work during the COVID‐19 pandemic," Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 62(3), pages 317-331, July.
    8. Okubo, Toshihiro, 2022. "Telework in the spread of COVID-19," Information Economics and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 60(C).
    9. Kikuchi, Junichi & Nagao, Ryoya & Nakazono, Yoshiyuki, 2023. "Expenditure responses to the COVID-19 pandemic," Japan and the World Economy, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    10. Quentin Batista & Daisuke Fujii & Taisuke Nakata & Takeki Sunakawa, 2022. "COVID-19 and Suicide in Japan," CARF F-Series CARF-F-542, Center for Advanced Research in Finance, Faculty of Economics, The University of Tokyo.
    11. Jieun Lee, 2022. "Moral Hazard on Productivity Among Work-From-Home Workers Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic," Papers 2209.05684, arXiv.org.
    12. Masayuki MORIKAWA, 2021. "Productivity of Working from Home during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Panel Data Analysis," Discussion papers 21078, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    13. Masayuki Morikawa, 2024. "Productivity dynamics of work from home: Firm-level evidence from Japan," Journal of Evolutionary Economics, Springer, vol. 34(2), pages 465-487, April.
    14. Richard Baldwin & Toshihiro Okubo, 2024. "Are software automation and teleworker substitutes? Preliminary evidence from Japan," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(4), pages 1531-1556, April.
    15. Behrens, Kristian & Kichko, Sergei & Thisse, Jacques-Francois, 2024. "Working from home: Too much of a good thing?," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 105(C).
    16. Masayuki MORIKAWA, 2022. "Productivity Dynamics of Work from Home since the Onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Evidence from a panel of firm surveys," Discussion papers 22061, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    17. Toshihiro Okubo, 2024. "Non‐routine tasks and ICT tools in telework," LABOUR, CEIS, vol. 38(2), pages 177-202, June.
    18. Linda Widar & Marina Heiden & Eva Boman & Birgitta Wiitavaara, 2022. "How Is Telework Experienced in Academia?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-20, May.
    19. Kurita, Kenichi & Katafuchi, Yuya, 2021. "COVID-19, stigma, and habituation: Theory and evidence from mobility data," MPRA Paper 110253, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Remote work; Human resource management; Job tasks; Shirking;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
    • J23 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Demand
    • M52 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Personnel Economics - - - Compensation and Compensation Methods and Their Effects
    • M54 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Personnel Economics - - - Labor Management

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