Rise of the robots: 1.5 million jobs are now at ‘high risk’ of automation, official figures reveal – and the most threatened roles are womens’
- The survey found women, young people and part-timers will be most affected
- Professions most at risk are waiters, shelf fillers and those in sales occupations
- Those at lowest risk include medical practitioners and senior professionals
- Areas of highest risk include parts of Staffordshire, Rutland and Lincolnshire
Almost 1.5million jobs are at risk of being replaced by robots, a new survey by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) has revealed.
Women and young people are at higher risk than other demographics in their jobs.
The ONS analysed the jobs of 20 million people from 2011 and 2017 in England and found that that 7.4 per cents are at high risk of automation.
Almost 1.5million jobs are at risk of being replaced by robots, a new survey by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) has revealed. Women, part time workers and young people are at higher risk than other demographics in their jobs according to the data
Of these, 70 per cent of the jobs were held by women.
It was also found that 16 per cent of employed 20-to-24-year-olds will be affected.
An assessment of 20 million jobs found the risk of job automation falls as workers get older, and is lowest for those aged 35 to 39, said the ONS.
The areas of England with the lowest risk of jobs being automated in 2017 were said to include Camden in London, Three Rivers in Hertfordshire and Oxford.
The ONS analysed the jobs of 20 million people from 2011 and 2017 in England and found that that 7.4 per cents are at high risk of automation. Of these, 70 per cent of the jobs were held by women
Areas of highest risk include Tamworth in Staffordshire, Rutland and South Holland in Lincolnshire.
The three occupations with the highest probability of automation are waiters and waitresses, shelf fillers and sales occupations, according to the report.
The three occupations at the lowest risk of automation were said to be medical practitioners, higher education teaching professionals, and senior professionals of educational establishments.
Reasons for the decrease are unclear, but it is possible that automation of some jobs has already happened, such as supermarket self-checkouts, the ONS added.
A recent study from researchers at Cornell University showed that when humans were put in direct competition with robots, it disheartened participants and made them view themselves as less competent.
One participant admitted that they ‘felt very stressed competing with the robot.’
‘In some rounds, I kept seeing the robot’s score increasing out of the corner of my eye, which was extremely nerve-racking,’ they added.
In an ever-increasing automated workplace, the researchers said that their findings have serious implications.
Guy Hoffman, assistant professor in the Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering said: ‘Think about a cashier working side-by-side with an automatic check-out machine, or someone operating a forklift in a warehouse which also employs delivery robots driving right next to them.
‘While it may be tempting to design such robots for optimal productivity, engineers and managers need to take into consideration how the robots’ performance may affect the human workers’ effort and attitudes toward the robot and even toward themselves.’