Professor Steven Dhondt has a reassurance of types for individuals within the EU fearful about dropping their jobs to automation: loosen up.

Dhondt, an skilled in work and organisational change on the Catholic College Leuven in Belgium, has studied the affect of know-how on jobs for the previous 4 a long time. Recent from main an EU analysis venture on the difficulty, he stresses alternatives relatively than threats.

Proper imaginative and prescient

‘We have to develop new enterprise practices and welfare help however, with the precise imaginative and prescient, we shouldn’t see know-how as a menace,’ Dhondt stated. ‘Somewhat, we should always use it to form the longer term and create new jobs.’

The speedy and accelerating advance in digital applied sciences throughout the board is considered the world’s fourth industrial revolution, ushering in basic shifts in how individuals stay and work.

If the primary industrial revolution was powered by steam, the second by electrical energy and the third by electronics, the most recent might be remembered for automation, robotics and synthetic intelligence, or AI. It’s often called “Business 4.0”.

‘Whether or not it was the Luddite motion within the 1800s by the introduction of computerized spinning machines within the wool business or issues about AI at this time, questions on know-how’s affect on jobs actually replicate wider ones about employment practices and the labour market,’ stated Dhondt.

He’s additionally a senior scientist at a Netherlands-based impartial analysis organisation referred to as TNO.

The EU venture that Dhondt led explored how companies and welfare methods may higher adapt to help employees within the face of technological adjustments. The initiative, referred to as Beyond4.0, started in January 2019 and wrapped up in June 2023.

Whereas the emergence of self-driving vehicles and AI-assisted robots holds large potential for financial progress and social progress, in addition they sound alarm bells.

Greater than 70% of EU residents concern that new applied sciences will “steal” individuals’s jobs, in keeping with a 2019 evaluation by the European Centre for the Improvement of Vocational Coaching.

Native successes

The Beyond4.0 researchers studied companies throughout Europe which have taken proactive and sensible steps to empower staff.

“We shouldn’t see know-how as a menace – relatively we should always use it to form the longer term and create new jobs.”

– Professor Steven Dhondt, BEYOND4.0

One instance is a family-run Dutch glass firm referred to as Metaglas, which determined that staying aggressive within the face of technological adjustments required investing extra in its personal workforce.

Metaglas supplied employees larger openness with administration and a louder voice on the corporate’s course and product growth.

The transfer, which the corporate named “MetaWay”, has helped it retain employees whereas turning a revenue that’s being reinvested within the workforce, in keeping with Dhondt.

He stated the instance exhibits the significance within the enterprise world of managers’ strategy to the entire subject.

‘The know-how could be an enabler, not a menace, however the choice about that lies with administration in organisations,’ Dhondt stated. ‘If administration makes use of know-how to downgrade the standard of jobs, then jobs are in danger. If administration makes use of know-how to boost jobs, then you may see employees and organisations study and enhance.’

The Metaglas case has fed right into a “data financial institution” meant to tell enterprise practices extra broadly.

Dhondt additionally highlighted the significance of areas in Europe the place companies and job trainers be a part of forces to help individuals.

BEYOND4.0 studied the case of the Finnish metropolis of Oulu – as soon as a number one outpost of mobile-phone large Nokia. Within the 2010s, the demise of Nokia’s handset enterprise threatened Oulu with a “mind drain” as the corporate’s engineers have been laid-off.

However collaboration amongst Nokia, native universities and policymakers helped develop new companies together with digital spin-offs and stored tons of of engineers within the central Finnish area, as soon as a buying and selling centre for wooden tar, timber and salmon.

Some Nokia engineers went to the native hospital to work on digital healthcare companies – “e-health” – whereas others moved to papermaker Stora Enso, in keeping with Dhondt.

These days there are extra high-tech jobs in Oulu than throughout Nokia’s heyday. The BEYOND4.0 crew held the world up as a profitable “entrepreneurial ecosystem” that would assist inform insurance policies and practices elsewhere in Europe.

Revenue help

In instances the place individuals have been out of labor, the venture additionally seemed to new types of welfare help.

Dhondt’s Finnish colleagues examined the affect of a two-year trial in Finland of a “common primary revenue” – or UBI – and used this to evaluate the feasibility of a unique mannequin referred to as “participation revenue.”

Within the UBI experiment, members every acquired a month-to-month €560 sum, which was paid unconditionally. Though UBI is usually touted as a solution to automation, BEYOND4.0’s analysis of the Finnish trial was that it may weaken the precept of solidarity in society.

The venture’s participation revenue strategy requires recipients of economic help to undertake an exercise deemed helpful to society. This may embody, for instance, take care of the aged or for youngsters.

Whereas detailed elements are nonetheless being labored out, the BEYOND4.0 crew mentioned participation revenue with the federal government of Finland and the Finnish parliament has put the concept on the agenda for debate.

Dhondt hopes the venture’s findings, together with on welfare help, will assist different organisations higher navigate the altering tech panorama.

Employment matchmakers

One other researcher eager to assist individuals adapt to technological adjustments is Dr Aisling Tuite, a labour-market skilled on the South East Technical College in Eire.

“We needed to develop a product that may very well be as helpful for individuals searching for work as for these supporting them.”

– Dr Aisling Tuite, HECAT

Tuite has checked out how digital applied sciences may also help job seekers discover appropriate work.

She coordinated an EU-funded venture to assist out-of-work individuals discover jobs or develop new expertise by a extra open on-line system.

Known as HECAT, the venture ran from February 2020 by July 2023 and introduced collectively researchers from Denmark, France, Eire, Slovenia, Spain and Switzerland.

Lately, many international locations have introduced in energetic labour-market insurance policies that deploy computer-based methods to profile employees and assist profession counsellors goal individuals most in want of assist.

Whereas this sounds extremely focused, Tuite stated that in actuality it usually pushes individuals into employment that is perhaps unsuitable for them and is creating job-retention troubles.

‘Our present employment methods usually fail to get individuals to the precise place – they only transfer individuals on,’ she stated. ‘What individuals usually want is individualised help or new coaching. We needed to develop a product that may very well be as helpful for individuals searching for work as for these supporting them.’

Able to run

HECAT’s on-line system combines new vacancies with profession counselling and present labour-market information.

The system was examined throughout the venture and a beta model is now accessible by way of My Labour Market and can be utilized in all EU international locations the place information is offered.

It will probably assist individuals work out the place there are jobs and how one can be greatest positioned to safe them, in keeping with Tuite.

Along with displaying openings by location and high quality, the system gives detailed details about profession alternatives and labour-market developments together with the sorts of jobs on the rise particularly areas and the common time it takes to discover a place in a particular sector.

Tuite stated suggestions from members within the take a look at was constructive.

She recalled one younger feminine job seeker saying it had made her extra assured in exploring new profession paths and one other who stated realizing how lengthy the common “jobs wait” can be eased the stress of searching.

Wanting forward, Tuite hopes the HECAT researchers can show the system in governmental employment-services organisations in quite a few EU international locations over the approaching months. 

‘There’s rising curiosity on this work from throughout public employment companies within the EU and we’re excited,’ she stated.

(This text was up to date on 21 September 2023 to incorporate a reference to Steven Dhondt’s position at TNO within the Netherlands)

Analysis on this article was funded by the EU.

This text was initially revealed in Horizon, the EU Analysis and Innovation journal.