Introduction
To a large extent, technology has greatly transformed the world we live in. Among other things, it has opened up the world through globalization, and created an opportunity for business enterprises to access a wider market. In addition, technology facilitates easy access to information and promotes sharing of good businesses practices. Unlike in the past, it is now easy to carry out work related tasks.
However, while technology can be hailed for making the world a better place, it has also impacted the society negatively. Allegedly, technology has turned most people into slaves and led to the destruction of many jobs. This paper looks at how technology has eradicated jobs in the modern day society.
Essay Body
Drawing from a study by Rotman (1), technological advancements over the years is to blame for the slow growth in employment experienced all over the world. With increased uptake of technology, it is envisioned that the number of jobs available will continue to dwindle. In the manufacturing sector, for example, the application of artificial intelligence and use of robots have completely taken over jobs earlier done by human beings.
According to Cellan-Jones (1), technology has been advancing at a very fast rate while employment opportunities have continued to decrease. Consequently, individuals are compelled to ensure that they have the skills needed in order to work with a given technology. Seemingly, this has created a scenario where employees and companies without relevant skills to survive in the industry are left behind. The profitability of business enterprises has also been made to decline as a result of inadequate skills to cope with newer technologies.
This has in turn affected their ability to hire new employees. The fact that business enterprises are denied an opportunity to make profits eventually leads to job destruction and a high rate of unemployment in the society. In the same way, employees with outdated skills are made to appear useless considering that companies are afraid to hire them for lack of important technological skills. As pointed out by Rotman (1), the same technology that is apparently making work easier and helping to increase the level of productivity in business enterprises is responsible for killing jobs and getting rid of humans from the job market. Evidently, the number of people working in the manufacturing sector has greatly declined due to increased use of robots and advanced automation technologies.
As a result of technological advancements, numerous white-collar jobs have been made to disappear from the job market. The use of Web related services and advanced artificial intelligence technologies has made it possible for organizations to access cheaper computing power that can easily replace human labor and reduce overall operating costs. According to Cellan-Jones (1), concerns have been raised by different scholars about the continued application of artificial intelligence and robotics.
Arguably, high dependence on these technologies will eventually lead to the extinction of the human race from the job market. In some instances, it has been presumed that machines are more predictable and intelligent than human beings. Allegedly, some machines are capable of reading the thoughts of humans and predicting their intentions. Apparently, this is an outstanding characteristic of technology that is responsible for promoting the adoption of technology at work place.
Based on a study by Gamble (142), there are a number of risks and uncertainties that are associated with the use of technology in business operations. Ostensibly, the impact of technology on work and productivity is quite profound. Research indicates that application of technology has led to the elimination of many existing jobs in professional as well as retail services. Regardless of the fact that technology is greatly responsible for the destruction of jobs, it has helped to increase wealth by creating a new range of job opportunities for those with advanced technological skills. While it is true that communities and occupations have been affected by job loss or reduced employment opportunities over the years due to advances in technology, societies have become wealthier (Gamble 143).
Conclusion
While there are several reasons to believe that technology has made the world a better place, it is quite obvious that advances in technology over the years are responsible for massive job destruction rather than creation. Through the application of artificial intelligence, for example, organizations have successfully adopted the use of robots to automate operations and subsequently eliminate dependence on human labor in some areas.
The use of advanced technologies to perform what would otherwise be done by humans has been blamed for sending scores of people out of employment. This is mainly because a huge percentage of the world’s population is a long way from attaining the skills required to compete successfully in economies that are largely driven by technology. As a result, there are many people who live in fear about the state of their employment.
Despite the fact that technology has been very instrumental in supporting economic growth in different countries, it is incorrect to assume that changes in technology are beneficial to all. As discussed in this paper, the livelihoods of many people have adversely been affected by reliance on technology.
Works Cited
Cellan-Jones, Rory. 2014. Stephen Hawking Warns Artificial Intelligence Could End Mankind. Web.
Gamble, Andrew. Crisis Without End?: The Unravelling of Western Prosperity. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan, 2014. Print.
Rotman, David. 2013. How Technology Is Destroying Jobs. Web.