Summary
A look at the history of technological advancements and their impact on the job market
What jobs are most likely to be at risk of automation
How we can prepare students for the ever-changing landscape of the job market
Automation and Job Loss Through History
Concerns about the impact of technology on the job market have been around for as long as jobs have. In recent history, we can trace this back to the Luddite movement of the early 19th century. The Luddites feared that the advent mechanized looms and knitting frames would cause massive job loss for textile workers. Rather than learn to use the new technology, some of the more extreme Luddites resorted to destroying the machines.
Here’s a quote from a TIME magazine story in 1961, “But automation is beginning to move in and eliminate office jobs too. . . . In the past, new industries hired far more people than those they put out of business. But this is not true of many of today’s new industries. . . . Today’s new industries have comparatively few jobs for the unskilled or semiskilled, just the class of workers whose jobs are being eliminated by automation.”
In 1900, 41% of the US workforce were employed by agriculture and by 2014 that number had fallen to 2%. Current projections estimate that one-third of existing jobs will be eliminated or otherwise impacted by automation.
Is Automation Bad for Jobs?
On some level, the purpose of technological advancement is to reduce labor or to make life easier so I don’t buy the argument that automation is inherently threatening to workers. Here’s a quote from an article published in The Journal of Economic Perspectives, automation does not, “necessarily reduce aggregate employment, even as it demonstrably reduces labor requirements per unit of output produced?” The idea here is that automation can eliminate certain jobs but it will consequently create new jobs. Furthemore, the article states that “tasks that cannot be substituted by automation are generally complemented by it.” Below is an infographic showing which jobs are at risk of being automated away.
Here are the top ten automation proof jobs or occupations least likely to be automated:
Recreational therapists
First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers
Emergency management directors
Mental health and substance abuse social workers
Audiologists
Occupational therapists
Orthotists and prosthetists
Healthcare social workers
Oral and maxillofacial surgeons
First-line supervisors of fire fighting and prevention workers
If you’d like to view the document these are pulled from, click here.
What Does This Have to Do with Education and AI?
Our job as educators is to prepare our students for life after school and while work isn’t the only part of that, it is an important one. Here’s table organizing the traits of jobs resistant and susceptible to automation.
With that in mind, our focus as educators should shift towards teaching skills and traits that are resistant to automation. Furthermore, unlike the Luddites we should encourage our students to learn to use new technology so they can innovate and demonstrate their skills to prospective employers.
The skills that stand out the most to me from these lists are creativity, critical-thinking/problem solving, and interpersonal skills.
Conclusion
Although AI will eliminate or reduce the need for some jobs, it will also create new jobs in their place
Education needs to further emphasize skills that can’t be automated away
Creativity, problem solving, critical thinking, and interperosnal skills are key for the future
What do you think about the future of jobs and AI?