The program Future Proof did a deep dive on the prediction that more than five million Australian jobs will disappear in the next 15 years. You can watch the episode here.
Didn’t catch it? Don’t worry. We did and have done the hard yards to give you guys a summary of what went down.
The program looked at how digital technology is changing the way we work. Basically, computers are getting smarter and are doing more and more of the jobs that humans used to do.
This is us, working.
Jobs like bank tellers and checkout assistants have already been taken over by computers and as computers get smarter more and more jobs will probably go the same way.
The less jobs we have to do the better right!?
Wrong. Some of the experts on the show are predicting that as many as 40% of the jobs that exist in Australia today will disappear which could lead to high unemployment levels and that’s not great for anyone.
Don’t freak out though. The experts (gosh so many experts) cast their minds back to the 60’s and 70’s when people were freaking out about typewriters, robots and early computers taking jobs away from humans. Basically the new technology did replace some human jobs, but it also created new ones.
Cut to shots of school students learning to code and create robots. Everyone starts talking about how these are the skills young people will need in the future.
Don’t stress if you’re not tecchy though because they then start talking about growing demand for jobs where humans provide personal services. We’re talking about jobs like PT’s, health care and for all you coffee lovers, baristas!
How can you make sure we’re all ready for these changes you ask? Enter FYA CEO and our personal hero Jan Owen!
Hi, it’s me, Jan Owen
Jan says we can take steps now that will ensure young people today are ready for the future of work. Excellent! She says that coding isn’t the only answer and that young people need enterprising skills!
What are these you ask? They’re skills like creativity, digital literacy, critical thinking and presentation skills.
Lucky for you FYA has been doing heaps of research in this area. In fact just this year we released a report which showed that these are the skills employers want from young people and that they’ll pay big bucks for them. We’re calling on the government to make these skills part of the national curriculum so all young people can learn them.
So in short, yes the world of work is changing but we shouldn’t freak out. There are steps that can be taken now to make sure young people are ready for these changes. Here’s an article we wrote a while back that might help you think about the enterprise skills you’ve already got.
Didn’t catch the program but want to? Check it out here
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