Remote work might solve the family care crisis for immigrants

Emma Zang, PhD, is an assistant professor of sociology at Yale University. She writes: 'For immigrant workers whose aging parents live abroad, the feasibility of working remotely will provide more opportunities to travel home, which, in turn, will allow them to more fully participate in the affairs of their family while maintaining their professional options. In fact, I know many fellow immigrants who have moved back to their native homes to be with family while continuing work in the U.S. We see this pattern within the U.S. as well: people moving back to smaller cities to reunite with family, thanks to remote work. This trend also has been happening worldwide — Eastern Europe, for example, has experienced an influx of returning workers, driven in great part by those telecommuting abroad.'