There are two things currently contributing to the employment crisis. Firstly, in a world where there was already enough unemployment to go around, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a loss of jobs on a massive scale throughout the world. Secondly, many people did hold their employment throughout the pandemic. But they got to work from home, experiencing being closer to their pets and loved ones, with more time to focus on what they cared about. Many of them resigned to follow their passions or find work where they could work remotely permanently.
Contrary to popular belief, smart and well-designed technology doesn’t aim to take even more jobs away from people, although this will occur in some sectors. Rather, it will open more and more avenues for everyone, hopefully removing unemployment pressure in the future. Here’s how tech tools can get the job of getting jobs done!
MORE REMOTE WORK
There’s no getting around the fact that a lot of people want to work from home. They can be closer to their families and pets for longer periods of time. They can prepare healthy meals more easily during their breaks. No commuting makes time for running errands and getting some exercise during the week. Plus, it allows people more opportunities for entrepreneurial ventures and side hustles, almost necessities in our changing economy.
Virtual reality and the introduction of various metaverses can work together to make this a more viable possibility for almost every industry. Already businesses who saw the budgetary benefits of having employees work from home are trialing remote work tools and platforms to streamline work day deadlines. Tech creatives are working on everything from the smartest to-do lists ever to platforms where employees can walk around as avatars for an immersive faux in-office experience.
Remote work means fewer people resigning from their jobs for the sole reason of wanting to work from home. It will also allow for people from out of town, even from around the world, to apply for jobs, instead of struggling to find something they can do and enjoy close to where they live.
MORE EFFICIENT TRAINING
Training is expensive for both employers and potential employees, especially when it comes to trade work. Augmented reality tools could be the answer. All a future employee needs is a secure internet connection and some time. Businesses would work with a tech company to design a virtual space where people could learn and practice in complete safety and on a budget. This will show them if they enjoy and have a knack for the work, preventing too much turnover. People who perform well during this phase of training could then be short-listed for some on-the-job training, without the need to spend on human resources to train them in the basics.
There are many industries that have no practical side and therefore, candidates can be trained online in full before starting work. The only time human intervention will be needed is if there are questions or concerns. If training is easier and more doable, people can get to work and out of unemployment faster.
ANYONE COULD DO ALMOST ANY JOB
Think about fixing a car. A mechanic looks under the hood, diagnoses an issue and fixes it. Augmented reality could help you do this job, even with almost no personal experience working with cars. After a problem has been diagnosed with a course of action, you could put on an AR headset or look at an AR tablet. You’ll see a virtual version of the physical object in front of you, with animated instructions telling you what to do. This could be a wrench loosening a specific bolt, as a simple example.
This means that someone who is desperate and unemployed doesn’t have to wait for work they have experience for or have to pay for training they can’t afford, to switch disciplines. This will be learning on the job at it’s finest and can be applied to almost every trade, and could even work as far as diagnostics.
WE’LL WORK ALONGSIDE TECH
There is a massive fear that all of our jobs will be taken by robots and we won’t be able to earn. The truth is, a workforce will always be a workforce of people. People are needed to run, manage and quality check any work technology does perform by itself. It has been predicted that we will still work, but our hours will be cut down significantly while still receiving the same amount of pay. This is because we would be performing very high-level work, with machines taking on the bulk of what needs to be done. This means that the output would be the same, if not exponentially more, but with fewer human hours or shorter shifts possibly.