Is Europe Turning Back the Clock on Remote Work? Insights from the Latest Trends

The Shift Back to Office Work
According to new data from Eurofound, the number of workers returning to the office is steadily rising across Europe.
The latest Living and Working in the EU e-survey shows that the share of employees working entirely from the workplace rose from 36% in 2023 to 41% in 2024, marking a shift away from the widespread teleworking trend triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic.

At the peak of remote work in 2021, over 40 million people teleworked across the EU, twice as many as in 2019.
While the shift to remote work initially happened overnight, the return to the office has been more gradual. Large companies are now pushing for a full-scale return, often against employees’ preferences. Employers argue that in-person work fosters collaboration, productivity, and innovation, whereas workers cite greater autonomy and improved work-life balance as key benefits of remote work.

Changing Gender Dynamics

The data also reveal a shift in gender patterns. For the first time, more women than men now work entirely from the office, while men have slightly greater access to remote work options.

Regional Variations in Teleworking

Teleworking rates vary widely across Europe. Remote work is least common in Cyprus and Greece, while the Netherlands and Ireland have the highest rates. Despite Ireland’s strong telework culture, an estimated 350,000 jobs that could be done remotely are still being carried out in the workplace.
While the transition back to office work is not universal, the trend suggests that Europe's teleworking experiment may be entering a new phase.