5G and The Future of Work.

Me: Hey Google! Could you please turn ON the water heater?

Google Assistant: Sure Boss! Good morning, trust you had a good night rest.

Me: Yes, I did. It was a bit frigid in here though! Please what’s the weather outlook for today?

Google Assistant: In Abuja today there’d be scattered thunderstorms, with a low of 23 degrees and a high of 33 degrees, and a likelihood of rain. You may want to go out with your umbrella today.

When humans work with machines, data and algorithms, there is significant productivity and efficiency gains.

Technology is rapidly changing the way we live, learn and work. With the rise of smart devices, smart homes, smart cities and the rise of artificial intelligence (AI is considered to be a set of technologies that enable computers to perceive, learn, reason and assist in decision making, to solve problems in ways that are similar to what people do), we have witnessed a growth in the cognitive abilities of digital assistants like, Alexa, Cortana, Google Assistant and Siri as they have become more sophisticated in helping us manage our daily activities. 5G is the wireless network technology that has the needed capacity to accommodate these rising number of connected devices, helping them communicate with each other in superfast speeds.

In recent weeks there’s been so much talk about 5G. Most of these talks has been a backlash about the health concerns and risk to human health posed by the adoption and deployment of the network infrastructure that powers this next generation wireless network. There was a lot of misinformation propelled by the number of high profile individuals across political, religious and even professional circles wielding so much influence and followership, who lent their voices to misleading conspiracy theories without recourse to what the experts in wireless network technology and scientists have said with facts and empirical evidence.

With the misinformation increasing anxiety and panic amidst all the uncertainty that has come with the coronavirus pandemic, there was need to set the facts straight, dispel falsehoods and correct impressions on 5G. That coupled with growing concerns from friends and family led me to writing my piece last week. After posting the article last week, I began to critically analyse and probe what the motive possibly is for people coming up with these fictitious theories and why they have chosen to push this resistance at this tensed time.

After looking critically at possible scenarios, it made sense that the decision to push these misleading narratives at this time when the world is grappling with a pandemic, was well thought out, strategic and intentional. With so much uncertainty surrounding the virus and how it spreads and scientists working hard to understand the virus and proffer solutions to this public health emergency, there is a widening gap between what we do know, and what we should know. Nature abhors vacuum, so it was quite timely and convenient to try to link the spread of the virus to the roll out of 5G technology, citing radiation concerns blown out of scale and proportion.

As I looked back to technology and its evolution, I tried to focus on what the major concerns about new technologies have been through past decades and centuries. Starting with the first industrial revolution which began in the 18th century, transforming largely rural, agrarian societies into more industrialized and urban ones. This shift was fueled by the discovery of steam power and eventual invention of steam engines that powered the industries. The second industrial revolution of the late 19th century to early 20th century powered by discovery of new materials like steel, chemicals and the invention of electricity, made it possible for factories to begin mass production of goods and development of railroad and automobiles. The invention of the internet and major advancements in digital communications technology which changed how we transmit information, interact with people and do business is known as the third industrial revolution. We are now in the midst of the fourth industrial revolution, which is being driven by artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, autonomous vehicles and biotechnology, powered by 5G. 

Looking back at all these centuries of great technological advancements and industrial shifts, we can clearly see that asides health, safety and environmental concerns, the major issue that spurred huge resistance was labour related. Automation makes production faster, taking up less time and far less human labour. Every major industrial shift caused by an advancement in technology has resulted in significant job losses. The mechanization of labour made human labour less valuable as workers were now forced to work long hours for meagre wages. These changes fueled serious opposition to industrialization, including as History Channel reported it, “violent resistance from a group known as ‘Luddites’, a group of early 19th century English workers who led by Ned Ludd, were known for attacking factories and destroying machines as a means of protest.” Indeed, these violent attacks from back then makes the recent attacks on 5G infrastructure seem like a déjà vu, making all the backlash 5G is getting feel like a scripted drama from the old playbook of industrial activism.

All through history, the introduction of new technologies have resulted in dire consequences to existing human labour in form of job losses and work changes. But through the years it has become evident that new technologies have created even more jobs than they destroyed. With the invention of the steam engine and eventual development of the steam locomotive during the first industrial revolution, we saw a significant labour shift as people moved from small rural and agrarian farming societies to large urban centres to work in manufacturing and transportation.

AI, Robotics and Cognitive Technologies powered by the superfast speeds of 5G will be at the core of the automation and work disruptions that will shape the fourth industrial revolution. As businesses move to adopt these new technological advancements in carrying out repetitive tasks to ramp up production, increase efficiency and reduce cost, jobs are being redesigned and work redefined. With machines handling routine and repetitive tasks, human labour is now required to do more skilled tasks that will require application of higher levels of human skills and capabilities like, problem solving, data analysis and interpretation, creativity, communications, customer service, teamwork and collaboration. When humans work with machines, data and algorithms (a process or set of rules to be followed in calculations or other problem-solving operations), there is significant gains in productivity and efficiency.

We will witness a change in how work is being done as we move towards task based systems. This will lead to a rise in remote workers or work-from-home (WFH) workforce as it is now fondly called. More companies will engage people on contract bases to perform specific tasks or execute particular projects as opposed to employing them as permanent staff and incurring all the overhead cost that is involved in retaining workers.

Perhaps one major industry that has been quite visibly impacted by automation is banking. As banks started to roll out automatic teller machines (ATM), we saw a decrease in bank teller staff. Most of these staff were laid off while others were moved to other departments even as the banks built more branches to get closer to the customers. With massive deployment of mobile applications by banks and development of different online payment solutions, the idea of brick and mortar banking is becoming archaic as physical bank visits have become largely unpopular. I really can’t remember when last I had to go run any transaction in a banking hall and I believe that is consistent with most of us.

As we transition into this new era of work, the World Economic Forum (WEF) has said in its Future of Jobs Report that a third of the skills we consider as crucial for today’s work would have changed in 5 years. These changes make it imperative for us to rejig and rethink what we teach students and how we train the existing workforce to take more challenging roles and equip students with skills that will prepare them to fit into the rapidly changing work environment. To succeed in the future workplace, one must stay committed to lifelong learning by possessing the ability to learn new things, collaborate, communicate, have good presentation skills and adapt to changing environments. Young people need to empower themselves with the following skills before entering the workforce:

• Understand how computers work.
• Know how to navigate the internet.
• Know how to use productivity tools.
• Know how to keep their computers safe.

While these new technologies will impact on virtually all spectrum of human endeavour, it will most rapidly affect fields like, manufacturing, construction, transportation, energy, agriculture, healthcare and education. As the Indian educationist, Harry Krishna Arya put it, “Teachers will not be replaced by technology, but teachers who do not use technology will be replaced by those who do.” Simply put, new jobs and opportunities for economic growth will accrue to those that embrace the technology, not those that resist it.

Brace Up! Skill Up!! And most importantly, Stay Safe!!!