Tag: Technical

Risk of Filipino workers being replaced by robots low–Unctad

The risk of workers in developing economies, including the Philippines, being displaced by robot-based automation of manufacturing processes remains to be low, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development’s (Unctad) 2017 Trade and Development Report.

In the Trade and Development Report 2017, with the theme “Beyond Austerity: Towards a Global New Deal”, the impact of growing automation via robots on industries, specifically in manufacturing, presents a complex picture.

Routine tasks in well-paying manufacturing and service jobs are being replaced by robots, according to the report, but low-wage manufacturing jobs in areas such as clothing factories are left largely […]

Digital skills needed in high-tech factories

Digital skills needed in high-tech factories

Infineon employees inputting jobs on an automated guided vehicle. The introduction of new workflow, technology and robotics requires new skill sets in troubleshooting and operating a variety of man-machine interfaces, said senior director of communications David Ong. Mr James Khoo has had his work cut out for him lately.

The hiring executive at Ultra Clean Asia Pacific is rushing to fill about 30 positions, mostly related to assembling machine parts or troubleshooting systems.

"Currently, we’re expanding. We have a lot of prospects coming up, and we need people who are qualified to take up the roles, especially technicians," said Mr Khoo.DISCOVER […]

Report: Majority of manufacturing jobs could be automated

Report: Majority of manufacturing jobs could be automated

Dive Brief:

McKinsey reports that automation has transformed manufacturing operations, employment and economics in the past 20 years and could bring more industrial changes with rapid advancements in robotics , artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning . As of 2015, 478 billion of 749 billion working hours dedicated to manufacturing worldwide were automatable, according to McKinsey, the equivalent of $2.7 trillion out of $5.1 trillion in labor "that could be eliminated or repurposed" if the available technology was adapted and adopted.

Companies that have not automated their operations need to think about three things, McKinsey says: 1) the possibilities […]

Why the robot revolution won’t play out as predicted

Why the robot revolution won't play out as predicted

You’d have to have been hiding under a rock not to know that 40 per cent of jobs in Australia – about 5 million of them – are likely to be automated in the next 10 to 15 years.

Ask a young person what they know about the future of work and that’s it. Which may help explain why so many of them seem angry and depressed about the economic future they’re inheriting.

This information is widely known because it’s the key finding of a major report, Australia’s future workforce? , published in 2015 by the Committee for Economic Development of […]

As Amazon pushes forward with robots, workers find new roles

As Amazon pushes forward with robots, workers find new roles

Nissa Scott started working at the cavernous Amazon warehouse in southern New Jersey late last year, stacking plastic bins the size of small ottomans. It was not, she says, the most stimulating activity. And lifting the bins, which often weigh 25 pounds each, was also tiring over 10-hour shifts.

Now Scott, 21, watches her replacement — a giant, bright yellow mechanical arm — do the stacking.

Her new job at Amazon is to baby-sit several robots at a time, troubleshooting them when necessary and making sure they have bins to load.On a recent afternoon, a claw at end of the arm […]

As Amazon pushed forward with robots, workers find new roles

As Amazon pushed forward with robots, workers find new roles

FLORENCE: Nissa Scott started working at the cavernous Amazon warehouse in southern New Jersey late last year, stacking plastic bins the size of small ottomans. It was not, she says, the most stimulating activity. And lifting the bins, which often weigh 25 pounds each, was also tiring over 10-hour shifts.

Now Scott, 21, watches her replacement — a giant, bright yellow mechanical arm — do the stacking.

Her new job at Amazon is to baby-sit several robots at a time, troubleshooting them when necessary and making sure they have bins to load. On a recent afternoon, a claw at end of […]

As Amazon Pushes Forward With Robots, Workers Find New Roles

As Amazon Pushes Forward With Robots, Workers Find New Roles

FLORENCE, N.J. — Nissa Scott started working at the cavernous Amazon warehouse in southern New Jersey late last year, stacking plastic bins the size of small ottomans. It was not, she says, the most stimulating activity. And lifting the bins, which often weigh 25 pounds each, was also tiring over 10-hour shifts.

Now Ms. Scott, 21, watches her replacement — a giant, bright yellow mechanical arm — do the stacking.

Her new job at Amazon is to babysit several robots at a time, troubleshooting them when necessary and making sure they have bins to load. On a recent afternoon, a claw […]

The Global Search for Education: Jobsolescence – A Conversation with USCIB President and CEO Peter Robinson

The Global Search for Education: Jobsolescence – A Conversation with USCIB President and CEO Peter Robinson

“I think the guiding principle for government should be to protect and enable/retrain the worker, not protect the job. Policy makers and educators should focus on making sure that workers are as equipped as possible to transition to new opportunities…”

— Peter Robinson

A recent OECD report finds that low and middle income earners have seen their wages stagnate and that the income share of middle-skilled jobs has fallen. Rising inequality has led to concerns that top earners are getting a disproportionate share of the gains from global “openness and interconnection”. This summer, the OECD Employment Outlook 2017 […]

How will Hong Kong fare in the new wave of automation?

How will Hong Kong fare in the new wave of automation?

A technician prepares SoftBank Robotics ‘Pepper’, a humanoid robot, at the 2017 World Robot Conference in Beijing on August 22, 2017. Photo: Reuters Amazon’s CEO Jeff Bezos has a favourite saying: ‘Your margin is my opportunity’. Photo: AFP With revolutionary developments in robotics, artificial intelligence and machine learning, the concept of automation replacing human jobs is quickly becoming a reality.

But there is serious debate about the consequences of automation on labour and economic markets, with a clear division between optimists and pessimists. Optimists believe that new forms of technology will lead to higher labour productivity, which in turn, will […]

Counterpoint: Unions Are Irrelevant

Counterpoint: Unions Are Irrelevant

Editor’s Note: For an alternative viewpoint, please see: Point: Organized Labor Is Not Going Away

Labor Day is celebrated to recognize the important contributions that U.S. workers make to the economic prosperity of America. But at the same time, it provides an opportunity to reflect on the declining relevance of organized labor to the success of our workers.

A century ago, unions played an important role in the labor movement by boosting workers’ wages, improving working conditions and giving workers a voice in the workplace. Unions were relevant then because organized labor provided a platform by which workers could better […]