Logistics firms are increasingly adopting home and hybrid working for office-based roles
Transport and storage businesses have dramatically ramped up homeworking, with adoption rising more than five-fold in just 12 months, new analysis of official figures shows.
Analysis of the Government’s latest Business Insights and Conditions Survey (BICS) by delivery specialist Parcelhero found that 14.1% of transport and storage businesses were using, or intended to use, increased homeworking as a permanent business model.
That compares with just 2.8% in the equivalent survey period in August 2025, an increase of more than 11 percentage points and the sector’s strongest result in more than two years of tracking.
The latest BICS figures cover the period from 17 to 30 August 2026.
The sharp rise means transport and storage, traditionally among the sectors least suited to remote working, has nearly caught up with manufacturing and moved ahead of wholesale and retail.
Parcelhero’s Head of Consumer Research, David Jinks M.I.L.T., said: “The rise means transport & storage, historically one of the survey's most hands-on, site-based sectors, has now all but closed the gap on manufacturing, and moved ahead of wholesale & retail on this measure for the first time in several waves.”
Manufacturing also recorded a sizeable increase.
Some 14.8% of manufacturing businesses said they were using or planning increased homeworking, compared with 7.7% a year earlier.
The figure has also climbed sharply since May 2026, when 9.8% of manufacturing businesses reported increased homeworking plans.
Jinks said: “Manufacturing also posted a strong increase, with 14.8% of businesses now using or planning increased homeworking, up from 7.7% a year ago – a near-doubling, and a jump of five percentage points in just the last quarter alone (from 9.8% in May 2026).”
Wholesale and retail businesses moved in the opposite direction.
In August, 12.2% of businesses in the sector reported increased homeworking plans. That was down from around 18% in May and below the 14.1% recorded in August 2025.
Parcelhero said the figures represent an unusual reversal following several survey waves in which flexible working had been increasing in the sector.
The growth in transport and storage is particularly notable because much of the industry depends on workers being physically present in warehouses, depots and vehicles.
Jinks said: “It's genuinely striking to see transport & storage – a sector built around drivers, warehouse staff and dispatch teams who simply can't do their core job from the kitchen table – recording one of the sharpest rises in homeworking adoption of any sector we track.”
He added: “A year ago, fewer than 3 in 100 transport and logistics firms were embracing increased homeworking as a permanent model; now it's more than 14 in 100, similar to manufacturing.”
Parcelhero believes much of the increase could be coming from office-based roles within logistics businesses rather than frontline operations.
Planning, customer service, administration and fleet management are among the functions increasingly suited to home or hybrid working, while drivers and warehouse teams continue to work on site.
Jinks said: “What's likely happening is that back-office, planning, customer service and fleet management functions within transport and logistics businesses are increasingly being shifted to home or hybrid working, even while the frontline delivery operation stays firmly on the road.”
Manufacturing may be undergoing a similar change as office, design and administrative functions become more flexible.
By contrast, Parcelhero said retailers may be reconsidering remote-working arrangements because of the importance of shops, customer footfall and other site-based operations.
The BICS survey has tracked businesses’ homeworking intentions since September 2020.
Transport and storage, alongside wholesale and retail, has historically reported some of the lowest homeworking rates because of the physical and customer-facing nature of many jobs.
However, Parcelhero cautioned against reading too much into short-term changes within transport and storage because sample sizes for the question have sometimes been smaller and previous waves have produced volatile or suppressed results.
Jinks said: “Even allowing for this note of caution, however, this jump in flexible working in logistics is remarkable.”
Parcelhero said artificial intelligence could create further changes in working patterns across logistics, although its research suggests the technology may have less impact on overall job numbers than some earlier forecasts suggested.
The company examines the issue in its report, “Putting the AI into supply chAIns”, which looks at the impact of artificial intelligence on logistics, warehousing, shipping, freight and global trade.