The ability to work from home used to be a luxury reserved for a select few. The flexibility to do your job from the couch, donned in your pyjamas with your favourite snacks or beloved pet by your side — what fortune!

In the world of COVID-19, things have certainly changed. Though working from home has its perks — mainly, the surety of our health and safety — most of us currently doing so are wishing for the days when we had any excuse to get out of our home.

Working from home is stressing me out more then being at the office 🥴

— A L Y ✨ (@Alyoov) April 15, 2020

Though a lot of Canadians are unfortunately out of work at the moment (and hopefully eligible for the CERB), a huge proportion of us that are still working are doing so from home now — more than seven times as many as usual, according to a recent survey.

The Canadian Internet Registration Authority sourced data from across the country to see how Canadians' online time has been impacted by the pandemic.

The report found that yes, working remotely has increased seven-fold in Canada — up from 7 per cent to 52 per cent of the population — with not only one, but two or more people working from home in almost half of households (44 per cent).

Working from home could be productive if people didn't have the virus to worry about.

— GEORGE B.B. (@grappytime) April 15, 2020

A quarter of those who've had to shift their work out of the office cite having no designated space in which to do their job at home, while other setbacks include having less face-to-face interactions (something we're all struggling with these days), not being able to "switch off" and not having access to the necessary office tools.

Another issue for a lot of Canadians — 38 per cent, according to CIRA — is slower internet compared to pre-coronavirus crisis speeds, regardless of provider, in part thanks to the fact that so many activities have been forced to go virtual.

#COVIDprotip: Now that we're all alcoholics and working from home, you can use that already-emptied Franzia bag as a lumbar support for your shitty office chair!

— COVIDprotips (@COVIDprotips) April 15, 2020

A CIRA spokesperson aptly points out in a release about the survey that "COVID-19 has changed everything. It feels like overnight the entire country had to move their work, schooling, and social calendar online."

Many experts are predicting that with the realization that so many jobs can be conducted completely remotely, a higher proportion of the population will continue to work from home even after the pandemic subsides.