Overview
- A Federal Reserve Bank of New York study published Monday finds that remote‑eligible jobs account for roughly 64% of the post‑pandemic rise in unemployment among college graduates under 29.
- The researchers show that physical proximity yields more frequent feedback and mentoring and that those interactions fall sharply when teammates are separated, a loss that hits younger workers hardest.
- Proprietary hiring data from an unnamed Fortune 500 firm in the study show the company hired fewer inexperienced workers when offices were closed and reverted to younger hires after reopenings, though distributed teams kept preferring experienced staff.
- The authors control for occupational exposure to generative AI and say the youth‑unemployment surge predates broad AI diffusion, though they caution AI could matter more going forward.
- The study draws on CPS data and a standard index of job 'remotability' and notes limits to generalizing from one firm’s data, while warning that prolonged early‑career unemployment can cause lasting earnings and career penalties and may require targeted firm or policy responses.