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Any serious discussion of the challenges facing the modern workforce must include an assessment of the impact of artificial intelligence (AI). Like all innovative technologies that have come before, AI has generated both optimism and anxiety as workers and industries weigh its potential benefits against the inevitable labor market impacts.
The reason new industries are able to overtake existing players is often outdated business models, and capitalism encourages innovation and fresh thinking, contributing to the constant evolution of the economy. Our world will look different with each major revolutionary change introduced. And perhaps instead of fighting it, we could work with it, reap its benefits, and use it to advance our workforce.
Previous technological innovations have primarily affected blue-collar jobs, replacing manual labor with more efficient and predictable machines. But things will be different this time, as AI is likely to disrupt white-collar jobs, especially those in middle- and high-paying occupations. There is significant overlap between the tasks performed in these professions and the capabilities of AI, putting white-collar workers at significant risk of job loss.
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It is important to note that a high rate of task overlap does not necessarily mean that AI can completely replace a role. When automation can perform simpler tasks within a job role, the remaining tasks tend to become more difficult and complex. This means that employees assigned to this role are highly rated and often paid better. So while automation may actually raise wages and increase demand for some types of white-collar jobs, it actually reduces the total number of employees needed and puts many workers at risk of unemployment.
Therefore, careers that have traditionally been criticized for not having a bachelor’s degree requirement may become the jobs of choice in the future, as AI-powered tools cannot take over these specialized, human-specific skills. However, AI is limited in its ability to perform complex problem-solving, advanced management, and social interaction, all of which are essential skills for careers in the trades and healthcare.
Even if AI can automate some of the day-to-day tasks in the workplace, these roles uniquely require a human touch, further insulating artisans from AI-induced displacement. For example, in HVAC work, AI algorithms may help diagnose problems, but then human experts must step in to perform the work and respond to real-time challenges with careful judgment, manual dexterity, and complex problem solving. In addition to physically performing tasks, workers also regularly perform roles that require customer interaction and emotional intelligence. Even if technology eliminates certain tasks in a trade career, it cannot easily replace empathy and trusting relationships.
Taken together, persistent labor shortages in the industry, the threat of an aging workforce, the effects of current immigration policies, and long-standing biases against the industry create a compounding effect that threatens the future of the U.S. workforce. Employers are increasingly desperate to fill open roles to maintain and grow infrastructure, but without workers who want to work and have the necessary skill sets, there’s little they can do. Projects are stalled, supply chains slow, and costs for businesses and consumers are rising. Without timely and effective action to correct the labor pipeline problem, economic growth will certainly weaken.
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But beyond building AI infrastructure, the growth of AI, robotics, and other technologies will create new skills gaps. These technologies require operators who are familiar with their functionality and repair personnel who can quickly diagnose and resolve problems. To meet this challenge, U.S. policymakers, employers, and schools should consider the importance of AI education and training to industry and health care professionals alike as they consider options to address future workforce shortages.
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In many ways, our education system is ill-equipped to meet this challenge. The emergence of AI, combined with declining labor force participation rates and deepening labor shortages, calls for bold and decisive action, yet the U.S. education system continues, for the most part, as slowly as it has for the past 100 years.
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The combination of job losses, new economic opportunities, and changing educational paradigms makes resourcefulness and adaptability even more important. The landscape of AI and how it relates to the world of education and work is constantly evolving, with new developments occurring almost every day. Successful workers and companies will integrate AI into their workflows to maximize efficiency while remaining human to their professions and delivering the best goods and services possible with available resources.
To address today’s workforce challenges, trade schools can harness the power of that wind to propel students and workers toward jobs that employers value and cannot easily automate or outsource to AI. This moment creates opportunities to recalibrate education and employment, expand hands-on learning, and advance careers in high-demand fields such as healthcare, technology, and skilled trades. But making the most of this opportunity requires a national effort. Closing the skills gap is a national responsibility and should be treated as such.
Riley Barr is executive director of the CECU (Career Education Colleges and Universities) Research Foundation and CECU’s vice president for policy and research.
