Mothers who work from home regularly earn around 10 percent more than those who do not, according to a new study. The research, which examined the long-term relationship between working from home and earnings, found no comparable benefit for fathers or men more generally.
Johanna Pauliks, of the University of Wuppertal in Germany, analysed data from nearly 9,000 UK employees to isolate the effect of home working on wages. Her findings suggest that remote work allows mothers to better balance professional responsibilities with family demands, contributing to increased productivity and improved earnings.
The study, published in the journal Work, Employment and Society by the British Sociological Association, used longitudinal data from the UK Household Longitudinal Study. It adjusted for variables such as age and education to identify the specific impact of working from home on income levels.
Pauliks found that mothers who worked from home earned between 9 percent and 12 percent more than those who did not, depending on the model used. However, the data showed no significant earnings boost for fathers, nor for women without children, under the same conditions.
Work-life balance a key factor in earnings gain
The study argues that the increase in earnings for mothers is linked to improved work-life coordination enabled by remote working arrangements. Pauliks wrote that “mothers are expected to prioritise family over work. Therefore, mothers stand to benefit more from the productivity advantages of working from home.”
“Working from home allows individuals to coordinate work and other life obligations more sustainably, enabling them to work more productively, which can then shape career and job opportunities, and could therefore be positively associated with earnings,” she added.
Pauliks noted that remote work allows individuals to better manage work alongside personal obligations, which can improve performance and, in turn, shape job opportunities and career development. These benefits appear to translate into higher earnings for working mothers.
The research challenges the assumption that using flexible working arrangements results in discrimination or lower earnings. Instead, Pauliks found that mothers who worked from home were not penalised for doing so, and in fact, gained a measurable advantage in pay.
Impact not seen across broader demographics
While mothers experienced clear benefits, the study found no significant change in earnings for women overall or for men who transitioned to working from home. This suggests that the positive association between home working and pay is specific to the experience of motherhood.
Pauliks explained that the unique methodological approach of her research allowed for a more precise understanding of how home working affects different demographic groups. She wrote, “The article’s unique methodological approach reveals that the earning benefits of working from home are specific to mothers.”
With employers continuing to review post-pandemic working arrangements, the findings suggest that remote working may play an important role in reducing gender-related pay gaps, particularly for working parents.