Workers face a double hit from climate change and new technologies, including Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the world of work, triggering a call for new skills and adjustment to survive the inevitable transitions, GLORIA NWAFOR writes.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is changing the landscape of the Nigerian job market, creating new job opportunities while disrupting traditional jobs.
Indeed, by 2027, the revolution coming from AI, among other emerging technologies, will create 69 million new jobs, while 83 million will be eliminated.
That implies a contraction of 14 million jobs globally in the next five years if explored.
Already, there are concerns that Al’s growth is currently threatening Nigeria’s fragile job market.
Specifically, the growing trend of AI could cause job losses in Africa’s largest economy where unemployment is rising close to 40 per cent, according to advisory services firm, KPMG.
While the full impact of AI on the job market is yet to be fully crystallised, experts have said that it is crucial to prepare for the future by investing in education and training programmes and also creating a supportive environment that encourages innovation and entrepreneurship.
According to them, by doing so, Nigeria can leverage the potential of AI to create a better future for its citizens.
The Director-General of the International Labour Organisation (ILO), Gilbert Houngbo, during a summit of G20 leaders, recently, highlighted threats of rising inequality, insecurity and vulnerability, urging leaders that AI made work on improving and protecting skills even more important.
According to him, workers will need new skills to adjust and thrive in the face of tough transitions.
He urged economies that research and policies should be considered to better assess the impact of AI on issues such as gender balance, social justice and other ethical and moral questions arising from its use in workplaces.
Similarly, findings of the World Economic Forum’s (WEF’s) The Future of Jobs Report 2023, which explores how jobs and skills will evolve over the next five years, said governments and businesses must invest in supporting the shift to the jobs of the future through education, reskilling and social support structures that could ensure individuals are at the heart of the future of work.
Specifically, the report estimates that, on average, 44 per cent of an individual worker’s skills would need to be updated.
Stating that strong cognitive skills are increasingly valued by employers, reflecting the growing importance of complex problem-solving in the workplace, it added that the most important skills for workers in 2023 are seen to be analytical thinking and creative thinking.
Already, stakeholders have expressed concerns over impending job losses following the growing robotised economy.
They, however, called on the Federal Government to actively improve social protection coverage.
Expressing concern over Nigeria’s gradual transition into the fifth industrial revolution which is driven by improved technology and AI, President of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN), Benedict Kanyip, at a National Labour Adjudication forum, said that since robotised workplaces have increased the risk of most, especially, the unskilled workers’ job loss, both the employers and employees should always refer to the jurisdiction of the court in resolving trade and other industrial disputes as it lies within the context of the law.
Past President, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Ayuba Waba. PHOTO/FACEBOOK/NLCHQ
Immediate past President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Ayuba Wabba, called for social protection for workers, training and retraining through capacity building for workers to keep them afloat and give job security to workers on the face of one robot doing jobs of many workers.
According to him, “As we progress into the fifth industrial revolution, there will be challenges brought about by these new forms of work. This means that Nigeria must scale up the issue of social protection to all workers regardless of where they work. We must find ways of expanding the social protection cover to ensure that all of them are protected because they are citizens and they deserve to have a means of livelihood.
“We do not want anyone to lose his or her job to robots on account of technology. As a result, the NLC is working hard to register new unions, including the informal sector and engaging more employers to see a need for improved working conditions, and protection of workers’ rights for their fruitful contribution to their employers.”
Also, while organisations are upping their game in terms of training and upskilling their workers in line with current realities, some unions, like the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN), have expressed fear of the repeat of the 2006 port concession lay-off.
While some industry stakeholders said the automation would ensure seamless cargo clearance processes and procedures, others feared technology would displace humans.
They expressed concern over the clamour of automation in port operations and processes in the country’s maritime sector.
They raised the alarm that the persistent calls for automation of port processes may lead to massive job loss among workers in the industry.
The Deputy President General, MWUN, Harry Tonye, at a stakeholders forum, expressed fear that the rapid introduction of technology and innovations in the maritime domain would lead to job losses, as witnessed during the port concession of 2006 that affected dockworkers and in turn led to a total reduction of labour employees in the industry.
He advised government agencies and other stakeholders to ensure such technological advancements are not at the expense of maritime workers.
Kanyip
According to him, employers of labour in the port community and government agencies should focus on manpower and human capacity development in line with international best practices through training and retention of workers.
He stressed that shipping lines, terminal operators and government agencies have not been able to build capacity for workers to meet up with the dynamism of the automation system in port operations.
Director of the Division on Technology and Logistics, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Shamika Sirimanne, recommends that developing countries need to prepare to benefit from AI by promoting the technology’s use, adoption, adaptation, and development.
“First, we need to continue preparing the workforce for work in the twenty-first century. This means developing digital skills and building and strengthening complementary skills such as complex problem-solving, critical thinking, and creativity,” he said.
He added that countries needed to take care of those who will lose in the transition to new forms of work.
According to him, “Reskilling programmes should be part of government policies and programmes to address job loss due to new technologies.”
