Abstract
We systematically review the empirical literature on the past four decades of technological change and its impact on employment, distinguishing between five broad technology categories (ICT, Robots, Innovation, TFP-style, Other). We find across studies that the labor displacing effect of technology appears to be more than offset by compensating mechanisms that create or reinstate labor. This holds for most technology-types, suggesting that anxieties over widespread technology-driven unemployment lack an empirical base. Nevertheless, blue-collar workers have been adversely affected by technological change, and effective up- and reskilling strategies should remain at the forefront of policy making along targeted support systems.
Original language | English |
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Article number | 122750 |
Pages (from-to) | 1-23 |
Number of pages | 23 |
Journal | Technological Forecasting and Social Change |
Volume | 194 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Sept 2023 |
JEL classifications
- e24 - "Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital"
- j21 - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure
- o30 - "Technological Change; Research and Development; Intellectual Property Rights: General"
Keywords
- Employment
- ICT
- Innovation
- Labor
- Robots
- Technological change