Ilona Dielen (p), Catherine Laffineur

Among the health measures taken since by governments following the COVID-19 crisis, teleworking is becoming permanent. Many jobs today allow the ability to work remotely, partially or fully. This work format removes the constraint of proximity to the workplace. This study aims to (1) measure the migration flow of remote workers since the pandemic. We use a large database covering all French employees between 2017 and 2020 and identify a remote worker profile with the classification of Dingel and Neiman (2020) and home-to-work distance. We show that an increase of one percentage point in the share of jobs that can be done at home increases the distance workers are away from their workplace by 1.58 kilometers. (2) To identify the effects of these flows on the property market. We observe the prices of properties sold between 2017 and 2021 and then aggregate this information at city-level. In order to capture the effect of teleworking in 2021, we use an instrumental variable of the share of remote workers among newcomers. We show that a one percentage point increase in the share of teleworkers in a municipality increases the value of the price per square meter of real estate by 99.17 euros. (3) To highlight the increase in wage inequalities between metropolitan and peripheral cities through access to the best housing at minimum cost and the widening gap.

Ruoshui He (p), Jonna Rickardsson, Charlotta Mellander

This study examines the association between age and residential location type on one hand, and well-being in the form of life satisfaction and subjective health status on the other, among individuals aged 70 and above in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic. Extensive research has consistently demonstrated a U-shaped pattern between age and subjective well-being, how does it vary with exogenous shock and geography? Based on survey level data for the year 2019 and 2020, we find that older individuals typically experienced a higher level of life satisfaction but perceive a lower degree of health status compared to their younger counterparts. Meanwhile, Pandemic-related worries and stress significantly and more profoundly affected younger individuals than older ones, despite older individuals being considered a high-risk group for the pandemic. In terms of Geography, we also find that older people living in larger cities experienced significantly lower levels of life satisfaction than elderly people living in small agglomeration or rural areas but better in their health conditions. By offering fresh insights into the desirable public health messaging and characteristics of residential locations, our findings have valuable implications for informing future healthy ageing planning practices.

Boris NIkitin (p), Nadezhda Zamyatina

Studies of the COVID-19 pandemic have repeatedly demonstrated that the role of spatial factors in the transmission of infection is significant. However, there is no universal spatial model thoroughly describing COVID-19 spread patterns. The paper proposes an original view on the centre-periphery model: regions are classified according to settlement pattern (static component) and openness (closedness) (dynamic component) characterising intensity of inter-regional human interactions (population flows). A total of 8 types of Russian regions are distinguished by the parameters of openness (closedness), population density and average size of a settlement. The course of the pandemic in the regions is analysed using the monthly trend of excess mortality, divided into three waves (acute phases) of COVID-19 spread. Empirical evidence shows that regions differ significantly in terms of the impact of the pandemic. Polarisation is the highest in the first wave, suggesting a greater role for spatial factors in the early stages of coronavirus outbreak. During the second and third waves, differences between regions begin to level out, probably influenced by internal socio-cultural and economic factors. The COVID-19 pandemic in the Russian regions allows us to rethink the traditional hierarchical concept of centre-periphery space. New dimensions are emerging: in addition to classical centres, there are remote frontier regions with similar functionality. Alongside the periphery is the outback (“glubinka”), close to the centre but paradoxically almost unaffected by its influence.