We’ve all heard that automation will take over our jobs, but that’s not entirely true. Many of the great inventions of the last two hundred years were designed to eliminate human labor.
Although machines took over human occupations, the fraction of US adults employed in the labor market is higher now than in the 1890s. For example — the automation in the food industry is huge, but why are there still chefs?
Well, people still prefer the human-created food than the processed food made by enterprises, and this also gives foodies a resource to eat high-quality human-made meals. So, with the rise of automation, why are there still so many jobs?
Human Creativity and Genius
Most of the work that we do require several skills, technical expertise, and intuitive mastery. Automating some of the tasks that humans can do, doesn’t make the other skills unnecessary. In fact, it makes them more important.
For example, when ATMs were created, many people lost their jobs. But then, the banks realized that they could use those tellers, who lost their spot, as a salesman. They are now the ones offering us credit cards, loans, and investments!
The same thing happens to surgeons, teachers, and architects. As our tools improve, technology improves our skills and increases the importance of our judgment, expertise, and creativity.
Employment Polarization
With the rise of automation, there are challenges to our work. It makes unachievable the jobs available, and that the low-paying jobs are not good.
HIGH AND LOW SKILLS
Here you have high-education jobs that have a reasonable payment, like doctors, nurses, programmers, and engineers. And on the other hand, low-skill positions such as food service, security, and cleaning companies.
The employment growth is robust in these occupations because automation can not overpower them.
MEDIUM SKILLS
Jobs in operations, production, sales and marketing, are shrinking. Computers can easily run these medium-class occupations.
High School Movement
When the automation eliminated farming jobs, the government had to invest in schools so that the youth could be prepared for working in the industry. This was expensive, but also the best investment. It gave us the most flexible, skilled, and productive workers in the world.
If the automation hadn’t happened, today we would have strong farmers, but that could not do other mundane jobs.
Final Thoughts
Automation will take part of our jobs, but it can not take our creativity, inventions, and minds. It will eliminate certain things, but it can also create new positions that required more skilled people.
