I decided to look for something dealing with technology in the workplace after I talked to my roommate the other night about how her mom has been unable to go back to work (after taking 20 or so years off to raise her and her sister) because everything that she used to do is now computer-based. This article doesn't directly deal with situations like that, but it does talk about how the use of computers and machines to do tasks formerly done by people is decreasing the demand for low- and mid-skilled labor and also increasing the demand for highly-skilled workers. Eventually, it seems, the only jobs that humans will be able to do are jobs that take a lot of education and experience. Unfortunately, low-income families who can't afford to send their children to college to gain the necessary skills and experience will suffer the most and be unable to break the cycle.
http://www.res.org.uk/society/mediabriefings/pdfs/1999/june/brespr.pdf
Video Reflection
14 years ago
You raise an interesting point about the digital divide. Computer skills are now taught to children, so those who had schooling before computer missed out on learning about computers. Now when computers are used more in the workplace, many individuals don't have the skills to use them. I would check to see what age groups are likely to need computer assistance when they are in a library. Even finding pictures of computer use in a library might show what kinds of people are using the computers. It would also be interesting to find out if lower income children are being taught computer skills at school, or if the lower income schools can afford computers for the needs of the students.
ReplyDeleteI found this to be a really interesting article. Technology keeps evolving and is getting more advanced, but as it does that, it is passing by many workers in the labor force as there skills stay the same. They have not been taught computer skills and as a result there is a shrinking in the high skill labor force. The description of computerisation in the workplace is something I have never heard before, but it is quite accurate as well. This article touches more on age than anything, but this diparity in age and knowledge that comes with being that age, is translating into an income equality. You brought up a really good point with how low-income families can't afford to send their children to college and are unable to gain the necessary skills. These are the ones who will suffer the most as technology continues to advance.
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