Why one-third of American working-age men could be displaced by robots
Why one-third of American working-age men could be
displaced by robots
Jobs that don’t require advanced education will be
replaced by automation, displacing low-wage, low-skilled workers.
By ELIZABETH BEYER Published: May 14, 2018 8:14 p.m. ET
Robots could be big job killers in the future, some
experts contend.
One third of able-bodied American men between 25 and 54
could be out of job by 2050, contends the author of “The Future of Work:
Robots, AI and Automation.”
“We’re already at 12% of prime-aged men without jobs,”
said Darrell West, vice president of the Brookings Institution think tank, at a
forum in Washington, D.C. on Monday. That number has grown steadily over the
past 60 years, but it could triple in the next 30 years because of new
technology such as artificial intelligence and automation.
It could be even worse for some parts of the population,
West argued. The rate for unemployment of young male African Americans, for
instance, is likely to reach 50% by 2050.
“That, my friends, is a catastrophe,” West said.
A lot of things can be done to avert such a problem and
rethinking education is one of them, West said. “Schools need to change their
curriculum so that students have the skills needed in the 21st century
economy.”
Molly Kinder, senior adviser at progressive think tank
New America, said the current state of manufacturing tells a story that will be
seen see across many occupations. Jobs that don’t require advanced education
will be replaced by automation, displacing low-wage, low-skilled workers.
Public policymakers need to make education, especially in
technology, for low-skill workers a priority to combat the potential for
soaring unemployment rates, she said.
Many are already hurt by the technology shift. Some 6% of
all adults say they lost a job or had their pay or hours reduced because of
automation, according to a Pew Research study published in October. And 65% of
adults believe most stores will be fully automated in 20 years and require
little human interaction.
West’s new book focused a lot of his attention on use of
robotics in the service industry. In the book he quotes Andrew Puzder, former
CEO of Hardee’s parent company CKE, as saying that digital devices are “always
polite, they always upsell, they never take a vacation, they never show up
late, there’s never a slip-and-fall, or an age, sex or race discrimination
case.”
Yet what executives might see as a good business move is
a source of fear and uncertainty for others. The prospect of being replaced by
automation is troubling for a number of young members of the workforce.
About 37% of millennials are at high risk of having their
job replaced by artificial intelligence or automation, says a study published
by Gallup in June. Among those, one-third are struggling with workplace
anxiety, worry about being laid off or their jobs being outsourced.
According to Gallup, many companies successfully manage
employees’ fears through future readiness audits. One manufacturing company
teaches its employees statistics and coding skills as well as how to
incorporate data and analytics into their everyday life. This helps to prepare
employees for an artificial intelligence driven future, Gallup said.
But, on a nationwide scale, the policies are not in place
to help workers adjust to these changes, according to Kinder.
And that future may arrive much quicker than most members
of the workforce think. According to that same Gallup poll, 59% of executives
believe that data science and analytical skills will be essential communication
skills within their companies in five years.
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