Case Switzerland:
What timescale is the title of the grapth (image attached) most likely to be referring to when it says the future?
A) 2080
B) 2050
C) 2030
D) 2028
E) 2020
Transcribed Image Text: Preparing
for Automation
The possibility of having robots or
mechanical assistants completing our
laborious, dangerous, or repetitive
day-to-day tasks has long been a
dream of humanity. Now, as Robotic
Process Automation (RPA) becomes
commonplace, this dream or
concern, depending on viewpoint -
is getting closer.
RPA, far from the walking, talking android
commonly found in science fiction series,
can be thought of as a programmable
piece of software which, through using
a series of rules, will complete repetitive
tasks with a lower error rate and less
interruption than a human completing
the same tasks. The aim of RPA, beyond
improving efficiency, is to free up
humans from the monotony of roles
like data entry, stock management and
predictable physical work, to focus on
more critical, unpredictable tasks such
as decision making, interpreting, and
delivering insight to customers.
Ask any expert and you can almost
guarantee that they will inform you
that years of data reliably point to
the conclusion that automation has
always created more jobs than it has
removed. The invention of the plough
has allowed us to stop working on farms
and technology has continued in this
fashion, boosting productivity and, in
turn, providing greater work satisfaction
and improved living standards.
It is currently estimated that 3% of roles
could be entirely automated using the
technology we have available to us now.
By 2025 this will have risen to around
35%, by 2030 it will be at 50% and by
2080 scientists are predicting advanced
artificial intelligence (Al) technologies
will have replaced 85% of current jobs.
A more astonishing figure is the 42%
of roles which could be made more
efficient, more productive, and more.
enjoyable through automating individual
tasks within the wider role. This is
not spread evenly across industries,
however certain industries like waste
management, an industry with a CHF 48
billion salary bill in Switzerland, where
many humans are currently paid 'hazard
pay' to do dangerous but repetitive
tasks, is the industry in Switzerland with
the highest potential for automation.
As we begin to enter this Fourth
Industrial Revolution, it is becoming
apparent that there is a separation of
organisations into two clear groups:
those who are using basic digitisation
to support their business, and those
who have re-examined the way they do
business and integrated combinations
of technologies, including RPA, to great
effect.
So, should we run for the hills or turn
and embrace RPA? The answer is not
clear but, looking at those who have
benefitted from this technology already,
preparation for automation will be key.
"By 2080 scientists are predicting
advanced artificial intelligence
(Al) technologies will have
replaced 85% of current jobs"
The Human Element
Posted on July 18th, 2020 | 0 comments
The rise of automation has been hailed as the solution to all of society's ills by the tech elite.
By removing the 'human element' from the job, the thinking goes, we can produce more,
faster, better and cheaper. The problem with this is that the 'human element' here is, well,
human. By removing people from these roles, we are looking at creating de-employment on
a massive scale. There is little we can do to stop the advance of this technology and it is all
coming at too quick a pace for regulators to account for.
We already see evidence of a lack of opportunity to work in our society. People working in
Switzerland are now working for an average of 20.3 hours a week when holidays are taken
into account. Switzerland's average weekly earning is CHF 1,615. Switzerland currently has an
unemployment rate of 3.3% with 264,000 people currently unemployed. Tech analysts are
predicting that we will lose 50% of current jobs in the next 7 or 8 years. Population increases
year on year of 0.8% will further compound this issue. All of this leads one to ask, what will
people do for work in an automated future?
So, what will a post-automation society look like? By separating capital generation completely
from labour, we are set to embark on an age of mass unemployment, the likes of which we
I have never seen.
Mass unemployment is likely to create large proportions of our society without a productive
outlet or sense of identity, as well as widening the gap between rich and poor. This future
could be a very bleak one indeed.