These would be jobs related to administrative, agricultural and commerce tasks.
A few days ago, Fedesarrollo revealed in the latest report “COVID-19 and Risk of automation in the labor market of Andean countries”, the effects that automation and technological change could have on the future of the labor market in countries like Bolivia , Ecuador, Peru, and above all, Colombia.
Although this is not a new term, automation in the workplace refers to the use of technology and systems to carry out work tasks or processes automatically, without direct human intervention. This concept encompasses a wide range of applications and technologies that seek to improve efficiency, precision and productivity in various industries and sectors.
Productivity in Colombia
According to the productivity indicators report of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Colombia has the lowest level of labor productivity among OECD member countries, evaluated by Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per hour worked. in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP). According to the data, the average contribution of a Colombian worker to the economy is 20 dollars per hour, compared to the OECD average, which amounts to 67.5 dollars. Furthermore, Colombia is positioned as the second country with the highest number of annual hours dedicated to work, registering 2,246 hours per worker, being surpassed only by Mexico, which reaches 2,255 hours.
The OECD highlighted notable disparities in labor productivity levels between countries, even within its own sphere. While in Ireland and Norway labor productivity is more than double the OECD average, with 162.5 and 137.9 dollars per hour respectively, in Mexico and Colombia it is around a third of that average, with 24 and 20 dollars per hour respectively.
Professions at risk
According to the executive director of Fedesarrollo, Luis Fernando Mejía, more than half of the workers in Andean countries like Colombia would be at risk of being replaced, especially those adults between 30 and 59 years old with secondary education: “The occupations most susceptible to Automation includes administrative staff, service workers, agricultural workers, as well as merchants and salespeople. On average, about 60% of workers in Andean countries, including Colombia, have a high probability of being affected by automation.”
less threatened
The professions least susceptible to automation are those that require a high level of creativity, social intelligence and physical manipulation skills, since they are difficult to automate with current technology. These include psychologists, artists, social workers, nurses, occupational therapists and construction workers. On the other hand, the professions most prone to automation are those that primarily involve repetitive manual tasks, such as jobs in manufacturing, cleaning, agriculture, fast food services, telemarketing, as well as administrative assistants, accountants and insurance workers.
Additionally, the study reveals that the percentage of workers with a high probability of being affected by automation in the medium term is 54% in Bolivia, 58% in Colombia, 61% in Ecuador and 65% in Peru. On average, this represents 60% of workers in the Andean Community, that is, six out of every ten workers. In the specific case of Colombia, the distribution of workers at risk of automation is 18% in services, 17% in commerce and sales, 16% in agriculture and 8% in administrative tasks.
“To mitigate the impacts of automation, it is crucial to implement policies that focus on improving the quality and relevance of education, as well as retraining programs for occupations most vulnerable to technological change. It is also essential to enhance creative and social skills, as well as the skills that are increasingly in demand in the labor market, such as programming, use of artificial intelligence and data analysis,” concluded the director of Fedesarrollo.
We are in danger? A look at the transformation of employment
Although, for the expert in e-commerce and technology, Jonathan George, the fear that automation could cause would be linked to a myth. For him, given the low levels of productivity that the country has, the arrival of technology and the evolution of how we conceive employment make it more than a threat, it is an opportunity to refine work: “Colombia is an unproductive country, always We are in the last places in productivity and that is explained because we have not made many advances in technological investment to be more productive. The premise that jobs are lost due to automation is false, to the extent that jobs begin to transform because other employment needs are created. Technological advances improve productivity, economy and quality of life of people.”
2024-03-10 05:18:55