The threat of automation to the UK jobs market is being broadly offset by the creation of high-skilled jobs, according to a report by Deloitte.
Despite the largely optimistic findings, the risk to those performing repetitive and low-skilled jobs is still high.
The report splits roles into those at high, medium and low risk of automation within the next 20 years. It then uses ONS data to analyse the impact automation has had on all three groups since 2001.
It suggests that since 2001 3.5m low-risk jobs have been created in the UK. These jobs include business and financial project managers (170,000 jobs created), teaching assistants (250,000) and care home workers (275,000).
These pay on average £10,000 more than the high-risk roles and have subsequently contributed £140bn to the UK economy.
On the flipside 800,000 high-risk jobs have been lost across the same period. Among these roles are personal assistants (210,000 jobs lost), typists (110,000) and bank and office clerks (100,000).
The research also suggests this pattern of dual job creation and loss is consistent across all regions on the UK. Although unsurprisingly, the South-East has enjoyed the highest percentage of job creation in the period examined:
|
Region |
Increase in low risk jobs |
Increase in medium risk jobs |
Increase in high risk jobs |
Net job creation |
Economic value added (£bn) |
|
South East |
46.6% |
28.3% |
-2.8% |
845,000 |
30.9 |
|
London |
41.0% |
42.3% |
1.3% |
870,000 |
30.1 |
|
East of England |
28.9% |
21.8% |
-9.3% |
306,000 |
11.2 |
|
South West |
19.4% |
8.5% |
-20.6% |
256,000 |
11.2 |
|
Scotland |
30.7% |
20.8% |
-4.4% |
317,000 |
10.6 |
|
East Midlands |
34.8% |
22.3% |
-11.5% |
221,000 |
8.3 |
|
Yorkshire & The Humber |
29.7% |
21.6% |
-11.2% |
214,000 |
7.8 |
|
North West |
23.6% |
16.0% |
-12.4% |
152,000 |
6.8 |
|
West Midlands |
24.5% |
22.7% |
-14.1% |
152,000 |
6.1 |
|
Wales |
31.5% |
28.6% |
0.1% |
221,000 |
6.0 |
|
North East |
27.1% |
26.1% |
-5.9% |
131,000 |
4.4 |
|
Merseyside |
48.4% |
31.6% |
5.9% |
127,000 |
3.5 |
|
Northern Ireland |
7.7% |
5.0% |
-8.7% |
135,000 |
3.4 |
Deloitte vice-chairman Angus Knowles-Cutler said the research showed that the shift to automated work “is well underway in every nation and region of the UK”.
“But we appear to be benefitting from this, not losing out,” he continued.
“Technology is replacing the high-risk, routine occupations in the UK economy but we are seeing good growth in the creative, caring and complex jobs at less risk of automation, as well as increased economic value from these.”
But he warned that “we cannot be complacent”.
“Business, educators and government must work together to ensure young people enter the workforce with the skills suited to the jobs of tomorrow and those already in work are able to re-skill during their careers,” he concluded.
Further reading: 1 in 3 entry level roles can be done by robots, but can automation create more jobs?
