Will your job survive the rise of the robots?

Accountants and drivers at risk of being replaced

HOW safe will your job be in 2019? Many jobs that were thought secure in the past are now in the firing line from the onward march of automation, a new report exclusively compiled for the Irish Daily Mail shows.

It’s not just low-wage workers that need to be worried. Highly skilled, knowledge-based workers in several financial sectors, could also see their jobs obliterated in the next decade.

Bank tellers, librarians, accounts staff and anyone involved in underwriting and insurance are in danger of becoming obsolete, according to the National Recruitment Federation (NRF).

Sophisticated technology is supplanting roles that were once the preserve of humans.

The NRF, which represents recruitment agencies throughout Ireland, predicted the 10 jobs most under direct threat by advances in automation in 2019.

Greater use of robots and artificial intelligence (AI) is behind the trend that will mostly affect construction, retail and accounting.

‘If you work in a profession that lends itself to potential automation, the possibility of machines doing your job faster and cheaper is real,’ said Geraldine King, CEO of NRF.

She said: ‘The constant threat and worry to employees is there more than ever before. The use of computers in the workplace has been the central force driving positive changes. But it’s not good news for employees in a range of sectors.’

Financial advisors once thought themselves irreplaceable but robo-advisers have cut a swathe through their industry.

These are software pro- grammes that use data from clients supplied through questionnaires to build a profile of them to create and manage suitable investment portfolios.

Forklift drivers and warehouse packers (already replaced by robots in some companies) are likely to be supplanted throughout 2019, said Ms King.

Drones and automated delivery vehicles will cause upheaval for the estimated 15% of workers whose job involves driving.

In the US, companies such as Amazon and Domino’s Pizza already use drones and driverless delivery vehicles.

But it’s not all doom and gloom.

A recent report said up to 100,000 high-end jobs could be created here in high-tech firms by 2030 as driverless cars become the norm.

Recently Taoiseach Leo Varadkar warned that workers could lose their jobs to AI.

He said the Government wants to provide training to upskill workers whose jobs are under threat.