September 2, 2024
Good morning! Coming to you this morning from the far Downeast Coast of Maine — where if God had made a prettier place… well, you know the rest. Bluesberries, lobster, spectacular shorelines, a thirteen-foot tide, and just one road.
Happy Feast of Labour — both in the United States and in Canada.
From our place here in Downeast Maine we are almost straddling the border.
At any given point in time — like now — are there more ships 
at sea or planes 
in the air?
Ever notice how most grocery stores use the banana as a loss leader?
Why is this?
- And, this is from Walt Disney?!
- I’m showing my age, no doubt.
- Characters in the movie, Deadpool & Wolverine, the most successful R-rated movie of all time, drop f-bombs more than 100 times. (Reuters)
- Our innocent home-town girl, Taylor Swift, uses the f-bomb 18 times in the song, Down Bad.
- The word is losing its appeal as the ultimate shock value swear word.
- And so, we will need a new word, apparently, if we want to shock others or drive home a point.
- All of this from Uncle Walt?
- Fifty feet from our front yard, in an outdoor basketball court frequented by 50+ youth each evening, we are treated to this f-bomb banter pretty much every-other word.
- On this Feast of Labour — and for the next couple weeks, we will share a few thoughts informed by Hazan, Etc., et al.
- As you read, it might be helpful to reflect upon some of the other transformational time periods in the history of work.
- For example, the Industrial Revolution, agriculture, or basic computing.
- We have arrived, so the experts suggest, at another transformative time — and everything is faster, much faster.
- Just small, bite-size pieces for you here.
- Up to 30% of hours worked could be automated by 2030, boosted by generative artificial intelligence, leading to millions of required occupational transitions.
- “To gain the full productivity benefits of generative artificial intelligence and other technologies, Europe and the United States will need to focus both on improving human capital and accelerating technology adoption.” (Hazan, Etc., et al., 2024)
- Amid tightening labour markets and a slowdown in productivity growth, Europe and the United States face shifts in labour demand, spurred by artificial intelligence and automation.
- Demand for workers in science, technology, engineering, and math-related, healthcare, and other high-skill professionals will rise, while demand for occupations such as office workers, production workers, and customer service representatives will decline.
- By 2030, up to 30% of current hours worked could be automated, accelerated by generative artificial intelligence.
- Efforts to achieve net-zero CO2 emissions, an aging workforce, and growth in e-commerce, as well as infrastructure and technology spending and overall economic growth, could also shift employment demand. (All Ibid.)
- By 2030, Europe could require up to 12 million occupational transitions, double the pre-plague pace.
- In the United States, required transitions could reach almost 12 million, in line with the pre-plague norm.
- Businesses will need a major skills upgrade.
- Demand for technological and social/ emotional skills; e.g., empathy, could rise as demand for physical and manual and higher cognitive skills stabilizes.
- Leaders in Europe and the United States expressed a need not only for advanced information technology and data analytics, but also for critical thinking, creativity, teaching, and learning — skills they report as currently being in short supply.
- Companies plan to focus on reeducating workers, more than hiring or subcontracting, to meet skills needs.
- Workers with lower wages face challenges of redeployment as demand reweights toward occupations with higher wages in both Europe and the United States.
- Occupations with lower wages are likely to see reductions in demand and workers will need to acquire new skills to transition to better-paying work.
- If that doesn’t happen, there is a risk of a more polarized labour market, with more higher-wages jobs than workers and too many workers for existing lower-wage jobs.
- (To be continued next week…)
Who is the writer of this poem; is it your usual author or is it Generative Artificial Intelligence?
Don’t Forget the Butter
In Maine’s cold, relentless tide,
Lobster boats on waves collide,
With traps and ropes, the dangers hide,
Brave souls on deck, their skills are tried.
Storms arise with sudden might,
Fog can steal away the sight,
Hands are cold in morning light,
A perilous task from dawn to night.
The ocean’s grip is fierce and tight,
Yet they return to face the fight,
For in the sea’s deep, darkened night,
Lies the livelihood they chase, their right.
