Nearly a quarter of global jobs will change in the next five years, according to the recent report by World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report.
The report estimates that 69 million new jobs will be created by 2027 and 83 million will be eliminated. The key driver for job growth is going to be green transition and localisation of supply chains.
Further the adoption of technology and increased digital access will also create net job growth but with greater offsets from losses; slower economic growth, supply shortages and inflation pose the greatest risks to jobs Indicating that the immediate job losses will be due to factors other than technology.
This estimation implies that macroeconomic developments, including an impending growth slump, will stifle job creation, along with a slower rate of skill development to meet employers’ requirements. Even though job growth is stagnant and labor markets are tight, employers report labour shortages; analysts expect the deficit to persist for some time, added the report.
The era of technology and need of upskilling/reskilling
With the rise of Artificial Intelligence in the post few years and advent of tools like ChatGPT one thing is for sure that AI is going to take away some jobs from humans. According to Goldman Sachs, as many as 300 million full-time jobs around the world could be automated in some way by the newest wave of AI that has spawned platforms like ChatGPT. This wave is similar to any other revolution from Gutenberg to Google. The world has seen many revolutions and while on one hand there were jobs lost on the other hand there were also jobs created.
Because of the digital revolution, as per the WEF report digital commerce is set to benefit the most in terms of job creation. Around two million new digitally enabled jobs are expected to be created in the digital commerce sector.
Further increased investments will also drive growth in more generalist sustainability roles, such as sustainability specialists and environmental protection professionals, which are expected to grow by 33 percent and 34 percent respectively, translating to growth of approximately 1 million jobs.
However the report also stated that the largest absolute gains in jobs will come from education and agriculture. The report finds that jobs in the education industry are expected to grow by about 10 percent, leading to 3 million additional jobs for vocational education teachers and university and higher education teachers.
Jobs for agricultural professionals, especially agricultural equipment operators, graders and sorters, are expected to see a 15 percent-30 percent increase, leading to an additional 4 million jobs globally.
Further when it comes to job losses, upskilling and reskilling is the way forward. According to the WEF report, a re-skilling revolution is becoming more urgent, with 44 percent of workers’ skills needing to be updated for continued employment.
“The good news is that there is a clear way forward to ensure resilience. Governments and businesses must invest in supporting the shift to the jobs of the future through the education, re-skilling and social support structures that can ensure individuals are at the heart of the future of work.” said WEF managing director Saadia Zahidi said.
In its Future of Jobs report for 2020, the WEF estimated that by 2025, the amount of time spent on current tasks at work by humans and machines would be equal. It further stated that 43 percent of businesses surveyed indicated they were set to reduce their workforce due to technology integration.
Where does India stand?
Indian employers expect 22 percent job changes in the country, compared with 23 percent on average worldwide, which is largely in line with the global trend.
India’s corporate sector is sanguine about its ability to create or sustain jobs. The WEF report finds that 61 percent of Indian companies believe broader applications of ESG standards will drive job growth, followed by adoption of new technologies (59 percent) and greater access to digital services (55 percent).
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