New technology comes with both advantages and disadvantages. On the plus side, it makes our world a more interesting place. It improves our lives and enables businesses to get more done in less time. The drawback? New technology inevitably reduces jobs. The Economist newspaper recently took a look at the double-edged sword of technology.
Job losses
The Economist story explains that new technology in most cases eliminates some jobs. It’s no surprise. To prove this point, the newspaper looks at farm life. About a century ago, one out of three U.S. residents worked on a farm. These days less than 2 percent of U.S. residents can say the same. Why? Technology.
Production
But thanks to technology, farms in the United States are more productive than ever, according to the Economist story. Farms today produce a lot more food than they did when so many more U.S. residents were working on them. Simultaneously, the laborers who left farm life found, thanks to technology, different jobs.
The problem
Finding those different jobs is key, naturally. It’s one thing for technology to eliminate jobs. This is OK if it provides enough alternative jobs at the same time. The issue today is that many people worry that tech is just eliminating jobs, not producing new ones. This, the Economist argues, is where governments step in. It’s up to the government to invest in continuing-education programs that will foster the creativity that today’s workers need as a growing number of lower-skilled positions disappear. If the education system doesn’t adapt to meet the needs of today’s workers? The country — and the entire world — may just be in serious trouble.