Almost a third of employees work from home
The coronacrisis boosted homeworking. In 2021, 37.9% of the employees worked sometimes or usually from home. We see in 2022 and 2023 that homeworking is here to stay: even though the percentage of homeworkers decreased reaching 32.2% in 2023, it is still higher than the level before the Covid-19 crisis. In 2019, 18.9% of the employees worked sometimes or usually from home.
The percentage of homeworkers is much higher among highly-skilled people than among medium-skilled and low-skilled people. In 2023, 53% of the highly-skilled employees worked sometimes or usually from home. For medium-skilled and low-skilled people, this share amounted to 13.8% and 4.9% respectively.
(a) Break in the results following a reform of the Labour Force Survey.
(b) Break in the results in 2021 due to the revision of the questionnaire and the change in the ILO definitions of unemployment and employment.
The sector with the most employees usually or sometimes working from home is the information and communication (75.3%), followed by the extraterritorial organisations (74.5%) and the financial and insurance activities (68.4%).
In 2023, the occupational groups in which it was possible to work sometimes or regularly from home were:
- Managers (64.1%)
- Professionals (58.4%)
- Clerical support workers (41.3%)
When asking employees who do not always work from home if they could work (even) more from home, three quarters of them answer that it is not possible in their occupation, 12.2% would rather work (more) from home, but the employer does not allow it and 12.1% would like to work (more) from home, but they would rather not do it or do not do it because of the home situation. For about 96% of low-skilled people and about 88% of medium-skilled people, working (more) from home is not possible in their job. Four in ten high-skilled people would work (more) from home, but they rather not do it because of the home situation (19.9%) or because their employer does not allow it (18.7%).
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Labour force survey (LFS)
Purpose and short description
The Labour Force Survey (LFS) is a socio-economic household sample survey. Its main objective is to classify the working age population (15 and older) into three groups (employed, unemployed and inactive persons) and to provide descriptive and explanatory data on every category. This survey is also carried out in the other EU Member States and is coordinated by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. In Belgium, the LFS is organised by Statbel. The objective is to obtain comparable information at European level, in particular as regards employment and unemployment rates as defined by the International Labour Office (ILO), but also to collect and disseminate data that are otherwise not available, for example about the mobility of workers, the reasons for working part-time, the various forms of part-time employment, the occupation, the educational level of the working age population, ... .
Survey population
Members of private households aged 15 or older.
Sample frame
Demographic data from the National Register.
Data collection method and sample size
Data are collected through face-to-face interviews. Since 2017, there have been three (shorter) follow-up surveys to which households respond online or by telephone.
Households with only inactive persons older than 64 can also be interviewed by telephone.
Every year, around 47,000 households receive a letter asking them to take part in this survey.
Response rate
The response rate is above 75%.
Periodicity
Quarterly
Release calendar
Results availability: around 3 months after the end of the reference period.
Forms
- Labour Force Survey 2020 (PDF, 541 Kb)
- Labour Force Survey 2021 (PDF, 1 Mb)
Definitions
Working from home: Doing any productive work at home related to the person's current main job.
Paid employment: All persons aged 15 or older who, during the reference week, performed work during at least one hour for wage or salary in cash or in kind (with or without formal contract), or who were temporarily not at work (due to sickness, maternity leave, holidays, social conflicts, bad weather or for other reasons) and had a formal attachment to their job.
Self-employment: All persons who do not work for an employer and who performed work during at least one hour for profit during the reference week or were temporarily not at work. This category comprises self-employed workers (with no staff), employers (with staff) and unpaid helpers.
Level of education (3 classes): Low-skilled people are people who have at best a lower secondary education diploma. Medium-skilled people have obtained an upper secondary education diploma, but no higher education diploma. High-skilled people have a higher education diploma.
Metadata
Survey methodology
- Modifications to the Labour Force Survey (LFS) in 2021
- LFS: Methodological improvements to the Labour Force Survey 2017 (PDF, 99 Kb)
- LFS: Presentation of the survey until 2016 (NL-FR)
- LFS: Presentation of the survey from 2017 (NL-FR)