scholarly journals Adrian Wilkinson and Michael Barry (eds.) (2020) The Future of Work and Employment

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vicente Silva
2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 205-219 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina Behrendt ◽  
Quynh Anh Nguyen

The debate about the future of work has sparked a debate about how to ensure that social protection systems can provide full and effective coverage for workers in all forms of employment, including ‘new’ ones. While some emerging work and employment arrangements may provide greater flexibility for workers and employers, they may lead to significant gaps in social protection coverage, at a time when demands on social protection systems are increasing. It is therefore necessary to strengthen and adapt social protection systems for a changing world of work. More than ever, they have a key role in preventing poverty, reducing inequality, enhancing income security and enabling workers and their families better to navigate work and life transitions. Comprehensive approaches, including contributory and non-contributory social protection mechanisms, with equitable and sustainable financing mechanisms available through taxes or contributions, stand the best chance of offering adequate social protection to all.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anita Hammer ◽  
Suparna Karmakar

PurposeThis research contributes to current debates on automation and the future of work, a much-hyped but under researched area, in emerging economies through a particular focus on India. It assesses the national strategy on artificial intelligence and explores the impact of automation on the Indian labour market, work and employment to inform policy.Design/methodology/approachThe article critically assesses the National Strategy on AI, promulgated by NITI Aayog (a national policy think tank), supported by the government of India and top industry associations, through a sectoral analysis. The key dimensions of the national strategy are examined against scholarship on the political economy of work in India to better understand the possible impact of automation on work.FindingsThe study shows that technology is not free from the wider dynamics that surround the world of work. The adoption of new technologies is likely to occur in niches in the manufacturing and services sectors, while its impact on employment and the labour market more broadly, and in addressing societal inequalities will be limited. The national strategy, however, does not take into account the nature of capital accumulation and structural inequalities that stem from a large informal economy and surplus labour context with limited upskilling opportunities. This raises doubts about the effectiveness of the current policy.Research limitations/implicationsThe critical assessment of new technologies and work has two implications: first, it underscores the need for situated analyses of social and material relations of work in formulating and assessing strategies and policies; second, it highlights the necessity of qualitative workplace studies that examine the relationship between technology and the future of work.Practical implicationsThe article assesses an influential state policy in a key aspect of future of work–automation.Social implicationsThe policy assessed in this study would have significant social and economic outcomes for labour, work and employment in India. The study highlights the limitations of the state policy in addressing key labour market dimensions and work and employment relations in its formulation and implementation.Originality/valueThis study is the first to examine the impact of automation on work and employment in India. It provides a critical intervention in current debates on future of work from the point of view of an important emerging economy defined by labour surplus and a large informal economy.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adrian Wilkinson ◽  
Michael Barry

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