Tag: inequality

Robots stealing our jobs? Don’t panic, author says

Robots stealing our jobs? Don't panic, author says

A human tendency to revel in grim, dystopian future-gazing, and give too much credence to self-interested Silicon Valley "futurists", has led to fears that robots and artificial intelligence systems are about to take half of all human jobs.

But Kiwi World Bank economist and author Kinley Salmon gives human workers at least 25 years breathing space before any "labour-light" future threatens.

And he scorns the more extreme job-loss predictions touted by some of the biggest names in New Zealand and world business, seeing no signs of the robot revolution coming through in official unemployment or productivity figures. SUPPLIEDWorld Bank economist and […]

The Future of Automation Could Bring More Workplace Inequality, Tensions

The Future of Automation Could Bring More Workplace Inequality, Tensions

Automation, robots and globalization are rapidly changing the workplace and governments must act fast and decisively to counter the effects or face a worsening of social and economic tensions, the OECD warned.

Almost half of all jobs could be wiped out or radically altered in the next two decades due to automation, the Paris-based group said in a report last week. According to OECD Labor Director Stefano Scarpetta, the pace of change will be “startling.”

Safety nets and training systems built up over decades to protect workers are struggling to keep up with the “megatrends” changing the nature of work, the […]

‘Globalisation is moving from products to services and data’

'Globalisation is moving from products to services and data'

Hans-Paul Burkner, Chairman of the Boston Consulting Group (Photograph by Shekhar Ghosh) A lot of countries are closing borders, and there is a mood of anti-globalisation. There are right-wing attacks. How does this effect business?

It is not just right-wing attack but a populist attack from both sides of the extreme. They are seeing loss of control. In developed countries, they fear losing factories, and jobs. Overall, we have gone through a very positive development across the world, which has reduced poverty, increased life expectancy. More children are going to schools than ever before. Fewer people die than ever […]

How robots became a scapegoat for the destruction of the working class

How robots became a scapegoat for the destruction of the working class

Should workers fear the robots ? You don’t have to look far to find lots of people shouting "yes."

Magazines and newspapers blare headlines like " Welcoming our new robot overlords ," " When your new co-worker is a robot ," and " You will lose your job to a robot — and sooner than you think ." Studies suggest anywhere from 9 percent to 47 percent of American jobs could be automated in the next few decades. In 2017, Bill Gates proposed a "robot tax" to address the problem. Andrew Yang, a long-shot contender for the Democratic presidential nomination, […]

Op-Ed: The future of work: opportunity or threat for Barbados?

Op-Ed: The future of work: opportunity or threat for Barbados?

Future of Work – IDB By Carmen Pages-Serra There is no longer any doubt that we are facing what some scholars have called the fourth industrial revolution , characterized by new technologies that are transforming the world of work. It is a full-fledged technological tsunami , due to technological advances that are rapidly penetrating society and expanding across the globe at an unprecedented rate in the history of humanity. The aging of the population has also accelerated, especially in the Caribbean and Latin America. As an example, witness this statistic: it took the United Kingdom 75 years to double […]

Robot redundancy: four future scenarios for Kiwis’ jobs

Robot redundancy: four future scenarios for Kiwis' jobs

We’ve long been hearing about the threat of "robot redundancy" – and just whose jobs are at risk of automation.

Fewer than 5 per cent of jobs can be done entirely through automation today – and researchers have thrown out wildly varying forecasts how this might soon change.

One headline-grabbing study from Oxford University, suggesting that 47 per cent of all employment in the US was at risk of being replaced by computers and algorithms in the next 20 years, appeared overblown when set against findings of a forensic OECD investigation.Of the 21 advanced nations that report looked at, only 9 […]

J-PAL North America’s newest initiative explores the work of the future

J-PAL North America’s newest initiative explores the work of the future

“The future of work will be determined by who yields power and for what purposes. We are in a moment of great transition — we have an opportunity to imagine what a new social contract can be,” said Sarita Gupta, executive director of Jobs with Justice and co-director of Caring Across Generations as she kicked off last Friday’s launch of J-PAL North America’s Work of the Future Initiative .

Gupta opened the confercence with a powerful call to action for participants to shift the narrative around “the future of work.” The newest initiative from J-PAL North America, a research center […]

Women Will Face Disproportionately Negative Consequences from AI

Women Will Face Disproportionately Negative Consequences from AI

Prompts on how to use Amazon’s Alexa personal assistant are seen as a Roomba begins cleaning a room in an Amazon “experience center” in 2018. (Reuters / Elijah Nouvelage) Apple’s Siri, Amazon’s Alexa, Netflix’s prediction of your next favorite show—we’re already living with artificial intelligence, and its adoption by the business world will only increase in coming years. We’re already hearing about AI’s potentially disastrous impact on the labor market, but how will these technological tools, designed to augment or replace human cognition, affect women?

The first-ever study to map the labor consequences of AI for women, published by the […]

We need a big bet on technology literacy and education to move America forward

We need a big bet on technology literacy and education to move America forward

Will technology take over our jobs, destabilize our society and democracy? Or can we leverage technology to amplify human purpose and potential?

Technology has created a strange new world. Cats playing piano can now get more attention than political leaders — perhaps deservedly. Artificial intelligence can now generate chillingly compelling “ fake news .” Police are having trouble pulling over Teslas whose drivers are sleeping .

But these effects are small compared with what I believe are the central questions of our time: Will all this accelerating technology — which will generate incredible productivity and wealth — also cause labor […]

The future of work: Why every prediction you read is wrong

The future of work: Why every prediction you read is wrong

Fifth Frame co-founder Jon Williams. Source: Supplied. Every prediction you have read about the future of work will be wrong.

And the impact on workers in five or 10 years’ time is not an issue for the future, has the potential to be either positive or destructive and will be a consequence of actions taken today.

While the debate about the future of work continues to get plenty of media coverage, much of it is of the alarmist ‘the robots are coming to take your job’ version. It makes for good press and interesting, populist stories.However, the predictions for the near-term […]