Effects Of Technology And Structural Unemployment

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Introduction For many centuries, technology has encouraged growth: through increases in inequality and the market labor. Economists say that structural unemployment “occurs because workers don’t have the particular skills demanded by employers.” (Structural Unemployment: The Economists Just Don 't Get It. (2010, August 4)) There are many who question if technology has indeed raised or increases structural unemployment or if it hasn’t worsened the situation (by machinery taking over the jobs of humans for example or jobs that need a particular set of skills). But let’s say that technology changes do increase structural unemployment, why do most governments and economists encourage such change? This I will answer below.

Why do most …show more content…

Even though there may be times in which technology increases the rate of structural unemployment due to factors such as: “inability to afford or decision not to pursue further education or job training, new technology significantly increase productivity, but requires a fewer number of higher-skilled workers. Or even the choice of a field of study which did not produce marketable job skills.” (Structural unemployment. (n.d.)) The government and economists still find that even with the increases in structural unemployment due to technology advancement, in the long run, it can aid the growth of the economy as a whole better, then being fixated on the current rate of structural unemployment alone. For example, American’s worry more about the future in terms of the ability to invest into education for their future generations and getting positive results than worrying about what is happening right now. The American dream after all is to: achieve better in the …show more content…

Unfortunately, most secretaries only know how to use the typewriter, so employers will have a hard time filling new positions because the skills of the secretaries do not match their needs. (What is structural unemployment? (n.d.)) That would then mean that those secretaries would then have to be retrained to fit its future productivity. This would of course, increase structural unemployment, yet, it would also (in the long-run) increase employment, furthermore increasing the growth and sustainability of the economy. The government just needs to make sure that it is providing education and retraining workers in the areas that it is needed, as this would also help prepare the country for future technology developments (if there are to be any).

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