The introduction of machines driven by artificial intelligence (AI) and automation technologies has already had a significant impact on the manufacturing, automotive, logistics, retail, and wholesale industries, and the repercussions of their replacement on the human labour has been a hotly disputed subject. AI and automation technical…

Context: The article contributes to a discussion of how patterns of employment and qualifications are modified by the ongoing industrial transformation, called Industry 4.0. Although this transformation is said to be a global phenomenon, scholars increasingly discuss the national differences in the wake of Industry 4.0. Our article aims to…

New digital technologies are changing the nature and contexts of work in Canada. It is essential that education policy and practice acknowledge and respond to these changes. The impacts and implications of new and emerging technologies for work can be summarized within two paradigms: technology is replacing work through automation and digital…

The number of secretaries has declined one-fifth over the past decade. Those who remain often perform middle-management duties. One possibility for change is to recast the occupation as apprenticeship: a two-year stint similar to that of a law clerk. (SK)

Robots--powerful, versatile, and easily adapted to new operations--may usher in a new industrial age. Workers throughout the labor force could be affected, as well as the nature of the workplace, skill requirements of jobs, and concomitant shifts in vocational education. (SK)

As the use of robots and microprocessors in industry grows, the authors see little need to worry about loss of employment through job obsolescence. Rather, they expect a trend towards higher standards of living and the emergence of new goods and services. (CT)

Due to optimistic job trends in office education, the business education teacher is ideally suited to teach career education. Students and teachers must be informed of the bright business occupational outlook as well as the capabilities of and the resultant professional opportunities associated with office systems technology. (Author)

Examines the implications for the Brazilian labor force of automation and flexible organizational techniques. Focuses on employment levels, changing skills profiles, and the capacity to meet new requirements. Identifies central characteristics of the new knowledge base required of workers and the implications for training. (JOW)

A series of articles looks at computerization and unions in Australia, France, and India; bargaining agreements about technological innovation in India, the United Kingdom, and the United States; and the effects of technology on the labor force in the Federal Republic of Germany, Japan, and the United States. (SK)

Review of statistical data confirms worldwide trends: growth in services, decline in agriculture, and, in manufacturing, decline in industrialized economies but growth in developing ones. Although services are characterized by low productivity growth, certain types (such as research and development) exert positive influence on economic growth. (SK)

Workplace trends such as downsizing and information technology and the paradigm shift resulting from these trends have implications for the keyboarding/office technology curriculum. An integrated approach helps students learn basic computer skills as they master keyboarding and formatting. (JOW)

Increasing use of automated production and information communication techniques in the future will increase the ranks of the unemployed. Thus, a long-term educational project, beginning in primary school, is needed to change our present work ethic. (BB)

Examination of production jobs in 93 manufacturing firms (1978-86) and clerical jobs in 211 firms (1978-88) suggests (1) significant upskilling within most production jobs; (2) in clerical jobs, an even split between raised and lowered skill levels; and (3) decreasing skill levels associated with office automation. (SK)

A comparison of 1980 and 1987 follow-up studies of graduates of a bachelor of secretarial arts degree program indicates that significant change has occurred: fewer women are entering the business education teaching profession, salaries have improved, and the "office of the future" has become the office of 1990. (JOW)

This article discusses the impact of technology on the formation of skills and the career advancement of persons who are blind or visually impaired. It concludes that dependence on technology (computerization and automation) and the mechanistic aspects of jobs may trap blind and visually impaired workers in occupations with narrow career paths…