Rise of The “Working From Home Husband”

More men are working from home while their wives go to the office, creating a trend of "WFH husbands."

During the pandemic, working from home became common for most office-based Brits, but many companies and government departments are now encouraging employees to return to the office - which many find essential for creating a company culture and maintaining productivity, especially with covid risks extremely low. 

However, in some families, especially for men, the pandemic presented an opportunity to do a switch to full-time remote work and a recent study showed a growing trend, called The “Working From Home Husband.”

A study in the US found that over 2% of men work fully from home while their spouses work outside the home - and now the UK is catching up.

The study showed that many women work in fields like education, healthcare, and retail, which don't usually offer remote work options - and this has left a gap for someone to work remotely and also tend for their children and do school runs.

In the UK, data from the Office for National Statistics shows that one in five women work in health and social care, and another quarter work in retail and education.

Even those in retail support roles that could be done from home, like customer service, are being called back to the office by companies like Boots and JD Sports, finding it leads to better returns.

For one Mum, Sam Evans, 57, who runs a countryside activityes company, works in an office, while her partner, Benet, works from home, after previously working in an office in Soho.

She used to work from home but now prefers the office for productivity. She enjoys starting her day early and getting to the office after the gym.

Ms. Evans says her partner handles more housework since he's at home, which she appreciates.

Benet Slay works from his home office as a non-executive director. He enjoys the quiet of working alone at home and only seeks social contact when needed. He says it would be an adjustment if Ms. Evans started working from home too.

Professor Heejung Chung from the University of Kent points out that jobs where remote work isn't possible, like healthcare, education, and retail, are mostly held by women. She notes that even when men work from home, they often don't take on more housework or childcare to avoid challenging traditional gender roles.