How distant work impacts shifting patterns to and from Philadelphia, different cities

Data shows that people who work remotely were more likely to move to a new city during the COVID-19 pandemic and in the years that followed. And while that meant many were leaving expensive metropolitan areas like Los Angeles and New York City, Philadelphia has been less affected by the trend.

According to Census Bureau American Community Survey data recently analyzed by The New York Times, the pandemic has caused an abrupt shift in the number of people working remotely and the number of remote workers willing to go somewhere else. In fact, people working from home were more likely than all other workers to move during the pandemic.

But the effects were not the same everywhere.

While many cities grew the number of remote workers living there, data for 2020-2021 shows that expensive metros lost more residents than they gained, the Times analysis found.

While cities like New York, Chicago, Washington, and Seattle had higher percentages of remote workers than Philadelphia, significantly more remote workers moved out there as well.

New York lost 116,000 remote workers that year. Chicago lost 29,000 players, Washington lost 11,000 players and Seattle lost 3,000 players. Meanwhile, Philadelphia has only lost an estimated 1,000 remote workers, putting it in a neutral zone compared to cities the Times found in the red or “loss” zone.

Larry Eichel, senior adviser to the Pew Charitable Trust’s Philadelphia Research and Policy Initiative, said it’s difficult to quantify exact net gains or losses from survey data, but it’s safe to say that the city isn’t doing well even when it comes to patterns of migration to remote work have made a breakthrough, according to the most recent data.

“Philly obviously doesn’t seem to have been hit as hard as other places,” said Eichel, who has researched the impact of remote work on the city’s economy. “These numbers show that many people who are able to work fully remotely relocated early in the pandemic because they were able to.”

Areas like Austin, Denver, Boston, and Raleigh saw increases in both the number of long-distance workers moving to the city and a net increase in the number of long-distance workers living there. The Times viewed these cities as “win” zones.

Part of this phenomenon is due to remote work becoming more normalized during the pandemic.

Suddenly, employees could keep their current job while working in a more exciting or affordable city. This was particularly the case in cities like New York and San Francisco, where tech workers took part in what has been called the “Great American Migration of 2020” and “urban exodus.”

The most recent data is only up to 2021, as people are surveyed at different times of the year. Therefore, it is difficult to get a complete overview of the impact on cities.

“It’s hard to say because remote work and hybrid work are always changing,” said Eichel.

Other Census Bureau data has shown that younger generations will flock to Philadelphia in 2021, which some attribute to the city’s potential for remote work.

“With the rise of remote or hybrid work schedules, Philadelphia is an ideal home base or work-from-anywhere location for Gen Z seeking the ultimate live-work-play urban experience,” said Angela Val, CEO of Visit Philadelphia , told The Inquirer in March .

» READ MORE: Generation Z is moving to big cities – including Philly – while older generations are fleeing

Experts warn that population datasets are evolving as they include phenomena including students returning home from temporarily closed colleges and wealthy city dwellers fleeing to their beach homes.

Eichel also said the focus on remote workers misses another important group of workers in Philadelphia: hybrid workers.

“I think it’s important to look at remote and hybrid work as two different phenomena,” he said. “When it comes to hybrid working, it makes a big difference for the city whether you come into the office two days a week or four days a week.”

He added that there is evidence that some employers require their employees to come into the office more often, which can help a city’s economy.

Comcast recently announced that starting in the fall, employees would have to report to the office four days a week instead of three. A SEPTA spokesman said the company looks forward to servicing the potential increase in commuter traffic. A pizzeria owner in the Comcast Building said increasing office demands will improve his bottom line.

» READ MORE: At Philly’s largest job fair, some candidates looked for hybrid hours, but there were fewer employers to hire

Eichel said that hybrid work is increasingly reflected in population studies.

But in the meantime, it’s too early to say what that means for Philly’s future.