One in 11 jobs 'to be lost' as robots march in

Around one-in-11 vacancies currently being
advertised are likely to be obsolete by 2035,
according to calculations from jobs website Adzuna.
The roles - which include machine operators, legal
secretaries and other admin jobs - are expected to
lose out to automation in the coming decades.
Of the 56 major UK towns and cities studied by
Adzuna, Exeter has the highest proportion of
vacancies at risk, with 9pc likely to eventually be
replaced by robots.
In contrast, London, Reading and Edinburgh are
estimated to have the most future-proof jobs.
Adzuna, which crunched data from 100,000 roles
currently being advertised on its website, said
automation is coming sooner than people might
think.
“The risk of a robot invasion on the Devon coast
might sound fanciful, but there’s a serious message
for younger workers, whether they’re looking for
their first job, or are comfortably in a career: if you
want to remain relevant in the workplace, you need
to develop skills that cannot be easily automated,"
said Doug Monro, the firm's co-founder.
Proportion of jobs at high risk of automation by city:
1. Exeter 8.9%
2. Crawley 8.4%
3. Norwich 7.9%
4. Plymouth 7.7%
5. Warrington 7.7%
6. Southampton 7.7%
The findings echo numerous warnings about the rise
of robots. Three months ago, Bank of England chief
economist Andy Haldane warned as many as 15m
jobs were under threat of replacement by smart
machines. As there are currently 33.7m jobs in the
UK, this would mean close to half of all positions are
under threat.
Meanwhile, the Bank of America calculated that
robots will take over 45pc of all jobs in
manufacturing and shave $9 trillion off labour costs
within a decade.
South Korea is currently in the lead with 440
industrial robots per 10,000 employees in the
manufacturing industry, followed by Japan and
Germany. Britain has just 75, one of lowest levels in
the developed world, although some think this could
swiftly change.
In December, Nanyang Technological University in
Singapore unveiled the most humanlike robot ever
created, which will work as a receptionist on campus.
Nadine will not only meet and greet visitors, smile,
make eye contact and shake hands, but she can even
recognise past guests and spark up conversations
based on previous chats.
Meanwhile, Deloitte estimated that 60pc of jobs in
the retail sector have a high chance of being
automated in 20 years' time. Self-checkouts and
shelves stacked by robots will become a common
sight in UK shops by 2036, the consultancy group said
last month.
FINANCE
One in 11 jobs 'to be lost' as robots march in
Telegraph Tuesday, 16 February 2016
Elizabeth Anderson