We all can agree that change is the only constant, and trends in the job market are no exception. There are several factors that directly or indirectly impact the job market, which in turn make differences in our lives. Technology has the potential to change our way of living drastically depending on the way we use it. Let’s explore the impact that technology is having on the job market.
Exploring Impact of Technology in Job Market
Just like yin-yang, there are upsides as well as downsides of technology. The basic example is automation, it has helped us to increase our productivity and earn more profits but on the other hand, it has eliminated some jobs leading to an increase in the unemployment rate.
Positive Impact
We all have to agree that no matter how far the human mind explores, there are still complex tasks that we cannot perform on a regular basis. This is where technology backs us up. Powered by human minds, these technologies have the ability to carry out complex operations smoothly. Consistency is something that is cherished in the job market and compared to humans, technology has proved to be more consistent over the years. Businesses can depend on technology to function 24×7 with little to no maintenance, whereas expecting the same from humans would be considered inhumane. In simple words, with the help of technology, we can accelerate the growth in the job market in a more convenient way.
Negative Impact
Just imagine if we keep on implementing technology at every step, what will happen to the workforce. Eventually, technology will take over and jobs will become redundant. Businesses will invest more in implementing technologies over hiring people and the ones with stable jobs would be those few people with exceptional technical skills. There’s no denying that skillsets are the most basic requirement for any job role and the ones who learn new skills can live a much more stable life than the others. Stability at least in terms of job security.
Missing Aspects
If you look around, you will find people who are not willing to acknowledge or appreciate the positive impact technology is creating in our lives instead they focus on the negative impact. We can try to understand them, it is perfectly normal for them to look at the jobs that have been destroyed because of technological advancement but what is missed here, is the opportunity that has been created simultaneously with these advancements. The opportunities are subjective too, the ones who keep up with the pace are at the top of job markets and the ones who are slow to accept technological change are lagging.
In the theoretical aspect, the errors can be entertained but when it comes to real life, any minor error can prove to be fatal. We have been able to eliminate human errors and risks with the help of technology. Our world is complex and technology has helped us to understand it much better than we did back then. By eliminating risks we have been able to create a safe environment around us. The potential risks that were difficult to get rid of previously can be easily dealt with by identifying the same in the planning process with the help of technology. We have learned to be a step ahead in casualties and better prevent it, all because of technology.
There is also an important aspect that is missed out by most, the thing that if the company is capable of being more productive using technology, then they will create more job roles so that they can stay ahead in the competition. Maybe the inverse proportion is not true in every case, there is a direct proportion here, more productivity will lead to the creation of more job roles. Again, this is another perspective of exploring the concept of technology and its impacts and it varies depending on the section of the job market that we are considering.
Become a Life-Long Learner
We can bet that lifelong learners will not have a hard time dealing with the impacts of technology in the job market. They are the ones who are willing to leave their comfort zones in order to explore and learn new things that have a positive impact. It’s the second nature of humans to be curious about current trends and explore how it is impacting the present, and how it will impact the future. When most of the repeated tasks will be allocated to technology-driven machines, humans will have more time in hand to invent and create. With technological advancement, the time, energy, and efforts of humans will be invested in creating more meaningful things over carrying out the same routine tasks that have little to no changes.
Accepting Reality
The impact of technology on the job market cannot be this dreadful, can it be? We cannot ignore the reality so why make an exception this time, let’s prepare ourselves instead. We know technology is the future and over time it will become an integral part of human existence. We can accept this reality and rather focus on learning new skills which will be valuable and cannot be replaced easily by technology. Also, have you observed how there has been an increase in high-paying jobs in the market since technology implementation? This is because the skills are appreciated more now and businesses are willing to pay extra to combine human skills and technology to earn the maximum profits.
Conclusion
We covered how our agreeableness to change and willingness to accept technology in the job market are related. We saw the impact of technology from both negative and positive lights, but we cannot take a side with one aspect. We will have to accept both the types of impacts of technology in the job market to eliminate our fear of job insecurity and find better opportunities for ourselves. Let’s keep in mind that businesses look for human resources who are capable of adapting quickly to changing times. They are in constant search of a quality workforce that will become an asset to the firm instead of becoming a liability struggling with the advancement of technology.