What Will the Future Bring? The Impact of Automation on Skills and (Un)employment

Abstract

A big concern in seeking to understand the evolution of the future of jobs and the demand for skills with the increase of automation is shown by the wide range of existing literature regarding the subject. This study gathers relevant information about the topics of: automation, the future of employment, advantages and disadvantages of technological changes, changes in the range of skills and if people are ready for the future changes or not. Firstly, the authors give an overview on the main topics that will be discussed later on in the article and construct a theoretical framework based on the current literature. Secondly, the methodology is presented namely the field work involving 21 interviews. After that, the interview results are analyzed, discussed and compared with what was shown in the literature review. The results revealed that people in general are not aware of the impact that automation will have on their working environment. Additionally, the authors concluded that existing education systems should be reformulated since the portfolio of skills will change in the future.