The number of working women who are based fully or partly in their own homes has increased substantially in the past five years, the national statistics office CBS reported on Monday.

The CBS said the number of people working from home increased by 300,000 in the five years to 2017, with most of the increase due to women. Female freelancers who work in the language-related or creative sectors are most likely to be home-based for at least part of the time, with women in managerial jobs a close second.

In 2017, more than three million people worked from home on a part-time or full-time basis. This equates to nearly 37% of all people in jobs in the Netherlands.

Several years ago working at home was hailed in the Netherlands as the ‘new way of working’. This was due partly because it saved on office space, partly because it was assumed people working at home would be happier and thus more productive, and partly to reduce rush-hour traffic.