Is this time different? A note on automation and labour in the fourth industrial revolution

The diffusion of digital technologies, computers, robots and now the outbreak of artificial intelligence and internet of things is causing major changes in the demand for labour. Many jobs are rapidly disappearing because the corresponding tasks are automated and this substitution concerns not only...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Economia e politica industriale 2019-09, Vol.46 (3), p.323-331
Main Author: Marengo, Luigi
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Automation
Business Strategy/Leadership
Economics
Economics and Finance
Entrepreneurship
Industrial economics
Industrial Organization
R & D/Technology Policy
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Summary:The diffusion of digital technologies, computers, robots and now the outbreak of artificial intelligence and internet of things is causing major changes in the demand for labour. Many jobs are rapidly disappearing because the corresponding tasks are automated and this substitution concerns not only low-skill manual and routine jobs, but more and more also cognitive medium- and even high-skill jobs. In this article, I briefly discuss two alternative views. One view claims that we are in a transition phase, but, alike the previous industrial revolutions, in the long run the balance between lost and created jobs will be positive both in numbers and, especially, in quality. The other view claims instead that the economic characteristics of the technologies of the current industrial revolution are profoundly different from the previous ones and that their impact on employment and social equality is likely to be negative on the whole.
ISSN:0391-2078
1972-4977
DOI:10.1007/s40812-019-00123-z