Information technology and employment issues - Essay Example

Information Technology and Employment Issues Introduction According to studies, ever since technology came into existence, people have always lived in fear. This is because most people believe that with the introduction of technology there are high chances of losing their jobs (Miller & Atkinson, 2013). According to predictions made by economists, although this innovation will result to improvement of productivity, there would be many effects in the case of employees. The fact that employees were always in fear of losing their jobs to machines, this was not the case for organizations. On the contrary, many organizations were pleased with the innovation since it implied that they would now be in a position to achieve their main objectives, which was productivity (The Economist, 2014). Apart from analyzing productivity, the study also relays more information on how the presence of technology has affected employment opportunities not only in the US but also globally. Fear of Change According to studies, many people are fearful and distrustful when it comes to issues regarding change in places of work. The most feared form of change is the one that involves new and complex technologies. When such changes occur, not only does it instill fear but also result to development of stressful traits among workers, especially the old as well as the less-educated personnel (Jordan, 2012). This is because according to many, introduction of changes usually comes with a number of repercussions, both positive and negative. According to studies, the current generation came with a number of changes, the most common being information technology. This innovation resulted fear among many staff members of companies and organizations. According to studies, people feared this type of change in their places of work since it meant that some people would lose their jobs (Jordan, 2012). Since computers do a number of tasks, this implied that many people suffer joblessness and only few computer literate persons would remain. Apart from fear of losing jobs and becoming useless, technology also has its own benefits as well. This is because introduction of technology in places of work also contributes directly to job creation (Miller & Atkinson, 2013). According to studies, the rate of unemployed people is ever on the rise not only in the US but globally. Each year, thousands of students graduate from colleges and universities but only few get jobs. Hence, introduction of information technology plays a major role when it comes to reducing the rate of unemployment (Miller & Atkinson, 2013). Apart from computer engineers, companies also employ computer scientists, database administrators and system analysts hence aiding in reducing the rate of joblessness. Productivity Productivity is usually the economic output of an input per unit, whereby the input unit comes in form of labor hours or production factors inclusive of machines and labor (Aamaas, 2012). According to studies, productivity plays a major role to a nation’s economy irrespective of the method used in achieving productivity gains. This is because through productivity there is improvement in the GDP per capita (Jordan, 2012). The GDP is essential to a nation’s economy since it handles issues related to federal debts in addition to governmental benefit obligations. According to studies, the main reason as to why many organizations prefer embracing information technology is the need to achieve their main objective, which is productivity (Miller & Atkinson, 2013). In a move to improve productivity, most organizations eliminate jobs that will slow down the objective achievement process. According to economists, the presence of information technology is the reason behind the massive growth of the nation’s economy (The Economist, 2014). This is because it is through technology that productivity has been on a steady increase for the past decade. Ever since computers came to existence, there have been changes in jobs available some of which are not good. According to studies, information technology can be of direct influence to labor markets in three categories; It can directly affect number of jobs irrespective of occupation or skills. It can change the job skill mix by altering occupational demands. It can change the job skill mix through altering occupational skill contents without affecting distribution (Castells, 2011). One of the most common debate with regards to the embracing of technology is whether presence of computers have played a role in elimination of the general need for human labor. According to economists, due to the dynamic nature of technology, there are high chances that the rate of unemployment is likely to increase in the future (The Economist, 2014). This is because according to them, the future economy will not require any workers since all transactions will be done virtually, hence resulting to massive unemployment in addition to idleness. This implies that although technology is the reason behind high productivity in the US, many people will end up ending up jobless (Castells, 2011). Therefore, if this situation persists there would be an increase in the rate of poverty. Machines and Humans According to Miller and Atkinson (2013), the fact that the rate of unemployment in the US has always been above seven per cent is enough proof that machines are in the process of replacing all jobs previously done by humans. Studies also show that although computers are the reason behind the nation’s high productivity, they are also main contributors in labor problems of the US (The Economist, 2014). It is therefore evident that these problems are likely to increase should technological acceleration continue. The reason as to why many organizations are embracing technology is that through this innovation, organizations are in a position to accomplish an objective with the help of only few workers (Miller & Atkinson, 2013). Although information technology received applause during its early days of existence, it is not the case anymore. This is because unlike in the past, many people are not comfortable having machines around them especially in the places of work. This is because so long as machines are present, the probability of losing jobs to machines or to computer literate persons is high. Currently, many journalists as well as economists in addition to policy makers are frequently opposing information technology (Miller & Atkinson, 2013). This is because according to them technology is doing more harm than good to citizens of a nation. According to them, instead of improving the living standards, technology is resulting to economic doldrums. It is because of these effects that have seen a number of books, magazines and journals published. The numerous publications are in a move to criticize technology by claiming that it is the reason behind the ever-increasing unemployment rates. According to these publications, should no intervention measures take place, destructive effects associated with technology in relation to employment are likely to increase (Jordan, 2012). According to studies, some of the repercussions that are likely to surface due to presence of technology include: Loss of jobs not only in the US but also globally: The recent innovation of electronic vehicles poses as a risk to truck drivers. This is because they too are likely to find themselves among the ever-growing bunch of the unemployed (Miller & Atkinson, 2013). Apart from truck drivers, teachers are also on the line due to the presence of computers that are not only able to grade exams but also draft journalistic accounts. Educated workers also stand a chance of losing jobs since they might find themselves replaced with personnel that are more educated. This implies that to be on the safe side they ought to improve their level of education, which could be an expensive process (Miller & Atkinson, 2013). There will be a decline in the demand for large labor market hence negatively affecting the economy since it will no longer be in a position to absorb labor surpluses in such a short time (Miller & Atkinson, 2013). Conclusion According to studies, many people fear change. This is because change draws a myriad of consequences. The most common repercussion associated with change in the place of work is loss of jobs. When change occurs, people lose their jobs to more skilled workers or machines. According to studies, ever since technology came to existence, people are always in fear of losing their jobs, especially the old and illiterate personnel. This is because since machines are capable of doing multiple tasks simultaneously, most organizations end up reducing their working staff. By reducing the working staff, these organizations are the main reason behind the ever-increasing rate of unemployment not only in the US but also globally. Apart from loss of jobs, some of the effect that comes alongside introduction of technology in places of work includes low demands for large labor market. Conversely, technology also creates job opportunities for persons such as computer scientists and engineers hence reducing the high rates of Unemployment. References Aamaas, A. (2012). Resilience and Unemployment. Zürich: Lit. Castells, M. (2011). The Rise of the Network Society: The Information Age: Economy, Society, and Culture. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons Jordan, J. M. (2012). Information, technology, and innovation: Resources for growth in a connected world. Hoboken, New Jersey: Wiley. Miller, B. & Atkinson, R. (2013). “Are Robots taking Our Jobs, or Making Them?” ITIF. Retrieved on 1 August 2014 from http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=21&cad=rja&uact =8&ved=0CBsQFjAAOBQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww2.itif.org%2F2013-are-robots- takingjobs.pdf&ei=CC_bU5byMKeS7AaanYHgDQ&usg=AFQjCNEQ2cHHEws5Ber_Y U-y1BHxfiK5jg&sig2=VFJejfs8tD6DdOvEDNQRsg&bvm=bv.72197243,d.ZGU The Economist. (2014). Coming to an office near you. Retrieved on 1 August 2014 from http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21594298-effect-todays-technology-tomorrows- jobs-will-be-immense and-no-country-ready Read More