Working from home has helped significantly mitigate the drop in the country’s gross domestic product(GDP).

According to a recent survey by the Bank of Korea(BOK) on Thursday, the GDP declined by only one-point-two percent in the first quarter of 2020 despite a drop in both workplace output and multifactor productivity growth. 

In the second quarter, the GDP fell by three-point-one percent despite minus growth in workplace output. 

Home office output steadily increased from 2020 to 2021, continuing to cushion the GDP decline. The central bank assessed that saving on commute time and having more freedom at home could raise productivity.

The survey showed that the number of employees working from home increased from 95-thousand in 2019 to over one million last year, rising by 12-fold.