Post-COVID remote working and its impact on people, productivity, and the planet: an exploratory scoping review

Abstract

Since the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, there has been a wealth of studies and reports published on the impacts of remote working (or work-from-home) due to pandemic lockdown measures. The primary aim of this article is to synthesise this work and conduct an exploratory scoping review of both scholarly and grey literature on the impacts of the pandemic on people, productivity, and the planet, with a focus on remote working (or work-from-home) and the post-pandemic workplace. Further, in light of the wide range of terms such as work-from-home, remote working, hybrid working, teleworking, telecommuting, and work-from-anywhere, a secondary but necessary aim of this scoping review is to clarify these terms before reviewing the extant literature on the multi-level impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. A review of this literature revealed that most of the scholarly research and industry reports published since the pandemic outbreak are data-driven and some anecdotal rather than theory-driven. The common themes and findings backed by evidence include the gendered division of labour, organisational trust and managerial trust in employees, changes in workforce management, virtual communication and collaboration, reduced carbon emissions, and increased plastic consumption. The scoping review concludes by discussing the post-pandemic workplace and a brief research agenda.