Remote work and firm productivity: Evidence from french collective agreements

La productivité des entreprises à l'épreuve du télétravail

Pierre Andrews
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Pierre Andrews: Université Paris-Panthéon-Assas

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Abstract: We estimate the causal effect of remote work adoption on firm-level total factor productivity (TFP) in France. We construct a novel dataset by applying a fine-tuned large language model to classify the universe of firm-level collective agreements filed with the French government since 2017, identifying those that establish remote work policies. Matching these agreements to administrative balance sheet data yields a panel of 20,000 firms over 2018-2025. Using a staggered difference-in-differences design with propensity score weighting, we find that remote work adoption increases TFP by 3.9 percent after five years, with gains materializing gradually over time. The productivity-remote work relationship exhibits an inverted-U shape : the optimal intensity is two days per week (+3.2%), while full-time remote work reduces productivity by 8.0 percent. Effects are concentrated among large firms and mid-sized enterprises, with no gains for SMEs. Sectoral heterogeneity is substantial : finance and insurance (+14.1%), information and communication (+9.4%), and professional services (+5.4%) benefit most, while manufacturing experiences productivity losses (-2.4%).

Keywords: productivity; France; AI; LLM; difference-indifferences; total factor productivity; telework; Remote work; Remote work telework productivity total factor productivity difference-indifferences LLM AI France (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026-02-10
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