Line graph: Employees working mainly from home

The line graph shows the percentage of employees who worked mainly from home in four sectors between 2015 and 2023.

Overall, home working was rare before 2020 in all sectors, then surged sharply in 2020 before falling back, though it never returned to its earlier levels in the IT and finance and education sectors. IT and finance remained the most home-based sector throughout.

In IT and finance, the figure rose gently from 10% in 2015 to 15% in 2019, then leapt to a peak of 70% in 2020. It subsequently fell to 60% in 2021 and 45% in 2023, which was still three times the 2019 level. Education followed a similar but lower pattern, with 5% in 2015 and 6% in 2019, a peak of 40% in 2020 and 30% in 2021, and a more marked decline to 12% in 2023.

Retail and construction recorded far lower figures. Retail home working rose from 2% in 2015 to 3% in 2019 and a high of 10% in 2020, before falling to 8% and then 5% in 2023. Construction was the lowest sector throughout, at only 1% until 2019, peaking at 4% in 2020 and finishing at 2% in 2023.