Category: Automation Impact on Jobs

Plan for the dispensable human

Plan for the dispensable human

Governments have to formulate suitable policies to protect ‘human’ interests over ‘machine’ interests.

Steam engines, electricity and computer-mediated communications technologies drove the first, second and third industrial revolutions, which progressively transformed the workplaces and radically altered our lives. However, irrespective of the magnitude of the technological evolution, machines always stayed imbecile and, therefore, required humans to instruct and run them.

But for the first time in human history, we are staring at the prospect of the emergence of cognitive machines that have the potential to edge out humans entirely from the workplace. Workplaces the world over, whether they are […]

Are Robots An Employment Problem Or An Income Problem?

Are Robots An Employment Problem Or An Income Problem?

I want to leave aside for this post about robots the question of whether or not they will take all of our jobs. Instead, I want to focus on what kind of a problem that will be. In a recent presentation , Betsey Stevenson argues there are two questions presented by automation and robots: Employment question: Can we find fulfilling ways to spend our time? Income question: Can we find a stable and fair distribution of income? This is a good way to think about it. Stevenson worries more about the second than the first, writing: I am confident […]

Before Replacing Jobs With Machines, Ask These Questions

Before Replacing Jobs With Machines, Ask These Questions

For one, what’s the objective — to improve service, save money or both?

When I travel abroad, particularly to poorer countries, I see people doing jobs that in the United States have been mechanized or eliminated, such as washing clothes by hand or cutting hay with a scythe. But during a recent trip to Europe, I saw the opposite: machines doing jobs that I was used to seeing people doing in America.

In Stockholm, for example, you can reserve a rental car through Hertz online and then pick it up at a parking lot using a little machine similar […]

WFSGI Manufacturers Forum delves into a digital world

WFSGI Manufacturers Forum delves into a digital world

The upcoming WFSGI World Manufacturers Forum this year focuses on digitalisation, automation, disruptive technologies and innovation – and will offer delegates the chance to take part in a tailor-made guided tour around Productronica, the world-leading trade fair for electronics development and production.

The fifth such event organised by the World Federation of the Sporting Goods Industry (WFSGI) is titled ‘Moving on to a digital and automated business of the future,’ and takes place on 14-15 November at the Munich Trade Fair Center (Messe München).

The event picks up on themes from previous years, which have most recently looked at ‘Beyond Lean […]

Study: Demand for construction trades will continue to climb

Study: Demand for construction trades will continue to climb

Dive Brief:

Demand for construction trade workers should continue through 2030, according to " The Future of Skills: Employment in 2030 ," a report based on a study conducted by Pearson, Nesta and Oxford University.

The aging of existing workers out of the workforce, urbanization and globalization will keep demand for trades high while positions for jobs like construction supervisors will decrease. The report recommends construction companies concentrate their training efforts on jobs that cannot be automated and prepare for a future in which labor will be augmented by machines. Dive Insight: Technological advances in […]

Three Ways To Robot-Proof Your Career

Three Ways To Robot-Proof Your Career

Shutterstock A level of fear permeates most of our jobs. What trend, recession, government regulation or market change could affect us at any time? How might my work relationship help me or hurt me? We all experience pressure in our careers — if not daily then monthly, be it some new change, new employee, new employment trend or new market turn.

It seems like more than enough just to stay focused on our jobs and progress in our careers. And now we need to worry about robots? Yes, we probably do. But the fact is if you are worried about […]

Third of British workers would be happy to have a robot boss

Third of British workers would be happy to have a robot boss

Nearly a third of British workers would be happy to have a robot as a boss, a new study has suggested.

A poll of 1,000 workers by cloud accounting software provider FreeAgent revealed that 31% would work for a robot boss, while 11% believe a "roboboss" would be more efficient than a human.

One in 10 workers said working for a robot boss would be just the same as answering to a human boss, with 42% of respondents saying they would be "comfortable" taking orders from a robot.The survey also revealed that men are more receptive to the idea of a […]

How fast is your career evolving?

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GetSmarter’s chief marketing officer Ryan O’Mahoney examines the workplace opportunities that digital disruption offers.
Robotic automation could result in the net loss of more than 5-million jobs across 15 developed nations by 2020. That’s the prediction in a recent report from the World Economic Forum.
Artificial intelligence, blockchain and big data are just three of the disruptive technologies contributing to these scary statistics and causing working professionals to fear whether their jobs will evolve in the future, or if they will cease to exist. But is this disruption really a threat to the working professional, or is […]

The robots are coming – and Labour is right to tax them

The robots are coming – and Labour is right to tax them

My son has just been given a new toy car. It’s small, blue and remarkably cute-looking for something that threatens one day to cost a lot of people their jobs. For what’s unusual about this car is that it wasn’t made in a distant Chinese factory before being shipped back to a warehouse here, then trucked to a shop, or dumped on a doorstep by an overworked Amazon driver with no time to ring the doorbell.

This one came straight off a 3D printer , one of those faintly space age-sounding gizmos that works a bit like a normal printer […]

With Uber Out, London Coalition Calls for Driver-Owned “Khan’s Cars”

With Uber Out, London Coalition Calls for Driver-Owned “Khan’s Cars”

Taxis blocked London roads in 2016 as drivers protested unfair competition from services such as Uber. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein) Last Friday, Transport for London (TfL) announced it would not renew Uber’s operating license when it expires on Sept. 30. The city transportation authority cited the ride-hailing app company’s habit of flouting government regulations and its approach to reporting serious crimes among the reasons for canceling the license. Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi responded with apologies and vows to appeal the surprise decision. More than 801,000 people have already signed a petition that Uber started calling on TfL to reverse the […]