According to a study reported in Fortune, employees can work as effectively from the kitchen table as from the office. (Full disclosure: my home office is not my kitchen table. For that matter, my kitchen table is not a kitchen table. But I digress.)
The study of over 30,000 workers found working from home increases productivity in the U. S. economy by 5%, mostly by reducing commuting time. After the pandemic, 20% of workdays will be from home.
This increase in productivity will not be evenly distributed. Some organizations will not adopt a "work from home" culture. Some employees by the nature of their jobs cannot work from home. As many of these workers are in lower paying jobs, working from home can increase economic inequality. This could be alleviated by a higher minimum wage or other improvements.
One thing is certain - employment is never going back to pre-pandemic conditions.