Impending automation conjures up images of empty factory floors where men have been replaced by robots. But don’t forget the increasingly digital back office. Where will female data-entry clerks and book-keepers go? The same thing is happening in the retail sector where automation and online shopping threatens the jobs of so many female shop assistants.
New McKinsey Global Institute research finds that 20 per cent of employed women and 21 per cent of men in six mature and four emerging economies could be displaced by 2030. At the same time, 20 per cent of women and 19 per cent of men could gain employment as technology drives productivity gains and income growth that leads to rising demand. In short, the impact of automation is broadly similar for men and women.
There will be huge disruption. As many as one in four women and men around the world may need to move to new jobs. But the women running the race to adapt do so with a weight tied around their ankles — the longstanding barriers they face in work. There are three prerequisites for adapting: skills the labour market wants; the mobility to change occupations if necessary; and the ability to work with automated systems. Women are not well placed here.