woman worker
Why Prepping For the Automation Revolution Can't Leave Out Women Workers
As it rages, the automation debate has tended to center on men because they dominate in many of the low-wage occupations that are at a high (and high-profile) risk of replacement, like driving and factory work. But according to a report released Wednesday by the Institute for Women's Policy Research (IWPR)--the first known comprehensive analysis of how automation will affect U.S. workers differently based on their gender--women could have even more at stake. In the U.S. labor market, women are overrepresented in other high-risk occupations that involve routine data work easily disrupted by AI, like secretaries, administrative assistants, receptionists, and information clerks. They're also overrepresented in jobs like child care, elder care, and education--ones that are comparatively "safe" from automation, but that may have lower salaries and few benefits. While women make up only half of the labor force, researchers found that they make up 58 percent of the workers at the highest risk of automation.