Automation is poised to impact the job market significantly in the future, leading to the inevitable elimination of certain roles.
As firms increasingly integrate robots in the manufacturing, culinary, and delivery sectors, employees have expanding prospects to partake in the creation and deployment of these technologies.
The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2023 predicts that both humanoid and nonhumanoid robots will impact employment, with companies anticipating growth, workforce displacement, or a neutral outcome due to this advancement. Sectors expected to embrace robotics the most include electronics, energy tech, utilities, and consumer goods, the study highlights.
The effects may differ depending on the industry.
Construction robots, which are autonomous or semi-autonomous, are transforming the building sector by automating various tasks like demolition, construction, welding, digging, and painting. They not only optimize efficiency by swiftly and accurately completing tasks but also reduce cost and time, minimizing the need for human labor.
These robots are capable of working in high-risk environments, such as extreme temperatures or hazardous material zones, ensuring safety for human workers. Their utility extends to structural inspection and maintenance. Fitted with advanced sensors, they can detect abnormalities in structures, identify potential problems like cracks or weak points, and execute repairs, mitigating time and cost of maintenance while ensuring structural safety.
For instance, these robots can be programmed to identify specific walls or structures, and subsequently use drills and saws for demolition, or to apply a predetermined color or pattern for painting tasks.
In a nutshell, construction robots, with their ability to work accurately, swiftly, and safely, provide a cost-effective solution for the construction sector, dramatically reducing project time and human labor need, and contributing significantly to worker safety.
The use of automation at companies large and small has two advantages, the Association for Advancing Automation argues. It reduces challenges for workers in taking away monotonous or dangerous tasks in their day-to-day roles and it keeps companies competitive and speedy in the production process. It can also help to solve an ongoing labor shortage.
“From a worker standpoint, it’s another tool — a tool to help you become more effective in the job you’re currently doing, to make you better eligible to get the job for the future, which are often better, safer and higher-paying jobs,” said Jeff Burnstein, the president of the group known as A3, which has 1,200 member companies all across the globe.
Businesses have to strike a delicate balance between using automation to make employees’ lives easier without replacing them entirely. Unions and labor rights advocates have often fought the adoption of robotics, worrying that it could replace some human functions entirely.
If they ever find a robot that can do all the mind-numbing chores retirees have to do, I just might buy one.
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Gary Fleisher, the Modcoach, author
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