Preference for working from home – subjective perceptions of COVID-19 matter more than objective information on occupational exposure to contagion

Abstract

We investigate how subjective and objective assessment of COVID-19 risks affect preferences toward working from home (WFH) and whether informing workers about the level of exposure to contagion in their occupation affects these preferences. In the summer of 2021, we conducted a discrete choice experiment combined with an information provision experiment with more than 11 000 workers in Poland. Estimating willingness to pay for WFH, we find that, on average, workers' are willing to give up 3.2%, 95% CI [2.8%; 3.6%] of earnings for such an option. The subjective assessment of COVID-19 risk matters as workers who perceive COVID-19 as a threat are willing to sacrifice a higher share of earnings for WFH than those who do not (4.1%, vs. 1.3% [p<0.00]). However, the preferences toward WFH differ to a smaller extent between workers in occupations with high or low exposure to COVID-19 [3.8% vs. 2.7%, p=0.01]. Informing workers about occupational exposure to contagion generally does not affect preferences toward WFH.