Automation and the End of Work?

The ESRC Centre for Digital Futures at Work (Digit) studies the way that digital technologies are reshaping work.Our academic research offers critical insights into the real world challenges, opportunities, risks and benefits of the ongoing digital transformation of work. We aim to generate new knowledge about the impacts of the transition on employers, workers, job-seekers and governments.Digit is jointly led by the University of Sussex Business School and Leeds University Business School, with Co-Directors Professor Jacqueline O’Reilly (University of Sussex Business School) and Professor Mark Stuart (Leeds University Business School).We also have partners at the universities of Cambridge, Manchester and Monash, the Institute of Development of Studies, the Institute for the Future of Work, and FutureDotNow.

ESRC Centre for Digital Futures at Work

Automation and the End of Work?Silicon Valley titans, politicians, techno-futurists, and social critics have united in arguing that we are on the cusp of an era of rapid technological automation, heralding the end of work as we know it. Have they got a point? The contemporary automation discourse responds to a real, global trend: there are too few jobs for too many people. However, it has misattributed the present-day, weak demand for labour to the rise of the robots and technical breakthroughs in artificial intelligence. In this talk, Dr. Aaron Benanav explains what is really behind this alarming trend, and explores the forces that now stand in the way of a transition to a post-scarcity society.

About the speakerAaron Benanav is a researcher at Humboldt University of Berlin. His first book, Automation and the Future of Work was published with Verso Books in November 2020. His writing has appeared in the Guardian, Dissent, Logic Magazine, New Left Review, Boston Review, and New Statesman. He is now working on a follow-up book on post-scarcity economics.

About Digit DebatesThis Summer webinar series from the <a href="https://digit-research.org/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Digital Futures at Work Research Centre</a> presents cutting-edge research from leading thinkers about how digital technologies are changing work.Our aim is to spark debate, challenge assumptions and become an essential resource for anyone who wants to understand how new technologies will impact employers, employees, job seekers and governments.Join us on Wednesdays, 1-2pm (BST)online, from 5th May* – 16th June 2021.*Please note that the session on 5th May will run from 4-5.30pm (BST) due to time differences between the US and the UK<a href="https://digit-research.org/events/digit-events/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Click here</a> for more information on other events in the series.

About DigitDigit, the <a href="https://digit-research.org/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Digital Futures at Work Research Centre</a> aims to advance our understanding of how digital technologies are reshaping work, impacting on employers, employees, job seekers and governments. It is co-led by the University of Sussex Business School and Leeds University Business School with partners from Aberdeen, Cambridge, Manchester and Monash Universities. It is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).

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Automation and the End of Work?

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Automation and the End of Work?

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