3A – Mechatronics / Electronics and telecommunications

Automated jobs and the future of work

 What will the impact of automation be on employment and the concept of work?

STEP 1 = Warmer and discussion

SLIDE 1 = What do the pictures represent? What types of jobs are represented? What issues do they
illustrate?
SLIDE 2 = Discuss the following questions with your groupmates + report to the class
1) Think about our everyday life and list the jobs that have already been lost to robots or that have
been automated
_ steam engines instead of horses
_ clothes making instead of tailors
_ cooking robots instead of cooks
_ robots instead of waiters
_ self- ordering in fast food restaurants
_ self check-out instead of cashiers
_ ordering online instead of going to the restaurant
_ online banking
_ call centers
_ sport referees (tennis/football with VR)
_ speed cameras instead of policemen
_ film making, with high tech
_ projectionists replaced with digital projectors
_ artists replaced with AI (music/painting)

2) In your opinion, what might the trend be in the years to come?

3) What impacts may automation have on work?

An increase in unemployment
More profit
4) What are the pros and cons of such changes? What are the arguments of the advocates and the critics of
such technology?
PROS CONS
_ more profit _ increase in unemployment
_ more independence for disabled pp _ make pp lazier
_ fewer human jobs with repetitive tasks _ consume more energy/ need for more raw materials
_ more meaningful jobs _ fewer social interactions/ more parasocial interactions
_ more pp in the entertainment field _ widen the gap between the rich and the poor
_ more jobs in mental health care _ worsen pp’s mental health
_ more remote work _ more remote work