Remote Work Popularity In Colorado Defies Elon Musk's 'Morally Wrong' Views

Billionaire Elon Musk called it "bullsh**t" and "morally wrong." JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon declared himself a remote-work skeptic, and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has stated that engineers "get more done" in the office. 

While companies like Amazon.com Inc., Apple Inc., Meta and Zoom may be demanding their employees return to the office post-COVID, remote working is far from dead.

About 28% of people work at jobs that allow for remote work, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.  

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And just as companies have differing views on remote work, some states have embraced the trend more than others. Colorado, for example, leads the nation for the highest percentage of remote workers at 38.34%, according to research from Cambridge, Massachusetts-based SelectSoftware Reviews.

The SelectSoftware study analyzed the U.S. Census Bureau's Household Pulse Survey, which reveals where someone has worked from home in the previous seven days across various demographic splits, including age, gender, income and educational background.

The survey found that while 7.8% of people work remotely one to two days per week and 13.2% work remotely at least five days per week, 63.7% don't work remotely at all.

Millennials — people ages 25 to 39 — work from home the most, with Massachusetts having the highest percentage of remote workers at an average of 48%. At 59%, Maryland has the highest percentage of remote workers who have a bachelor's degree or higher, and Utah has the most Americans whose highest education level is high school working from home at 23%.

 Highest Percentage Of Remote Workers

State	Percentage Of Remote Workers
Colorado	37.34%
Maryland	37.01%
Massachusetts	36.36%
Utah	36.02%
Washington	34.8%
Minnesota	33.69%
New Jersey	33.18%
New Hampshire	32.52%
Virginia	32.13%
Vermont	32.04%

The survey also found that more people earn a significantly higher salary working from home. Massachusetts has the most workers earning $200,000 or more, with 81% of the state's high-earning residents regularly working remotely.

High-paying roles involve working with colleagues, clients or partners from different parts of the world. Remote work allows professionals to collaborate across time zones without constantly traveling.

But lower-paying jobs often involve tasks that require a physical presence, such as retail, hospitality, healthcare, manufacturing and manual labor, which require hands-on work.

Although some CEOs are vocal about their opposition to working from home, others, such as business magnate Sir Richard Branson embrace the concept.

"First and foremost, I believe in flexible working," Branson said. "It is important that employers appreciate their employees' work-life balance and give them the flexibility to work around their personal lives."

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Photo: Generated with AI using MidJourney