Robots 'could replace 250,000 UK public sector workers'

Reform, a right-of-centre thinktank, says websites and artificial intelligence “chat bots” could replace up to 90% of Whitehall’s administrators, as well as tens of thousands in the NHS and GPs’ surgeries, by 2030 – saving as much as £4bn a year.

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/feb/06/robots-could-replace-250000-uk-public-sector-workers

Scroll to see replies

Reply 1

PossiblyNotGod

Damn robot immigrants, stealing our jobs.

Reply 2

username1148663

Original post by ChaoticButterfly

Begs the reply....... we'll durrr?

This is already happening on mass

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 3

Jammy Duel

Original post by paul514

Begs the reply....... we'll durrr?

This is already happening on mass

Posted from TSR Mobile

The head of the think tank wrote in the telegraph today about it and cited the progress already made, along with the fact the private sector has replaced the public sector jobs lost in recent years 8 times over

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 4

ChaoticButterfly

Original post by paul514

Begs the reply....... we'll durrr?

This is already happening on mass

Posted from TSR Mobile

Well good. May the middle classes join the see of the bottom classes :smile:

Reply 5

username1148663

Original post by ChaoticButterfly

Well good. May the middle classes join the see of the bottom classes :smile:

It's going to happen over the next two decades anyway.

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 6

Fullofsurprises

Original post by ChaoticButterfly

Yes, in the future, the NHS won't treat illnesses, they will tweet them.

Reply 7

ChaoticButterfly

Original post by Fullofsurprises

Yes, in the future, the NHS won't treat illnesses, they will tweet them.

Spoiler

Reply 8

Fullofsurprises

Original post by ChaoticButterfly

Spoiler

My mistake, I meant TrumpCoHealthVirginAppleGoogle MedicPLC.

Its been happening from long ago, started with bank tellers with the arrival of ATM machines.

Reply 11

Jammy Duel

Original post by Alfissti

Its been happening from long ago, started with bank tellers with the arrival of ATM machines.

Started well before that

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 12

Maker

As long as they speak English.

Reply 13

nexttime

Not sure why healthcare jobs are already mentioned in these things. Its a sector extremely reliant on frontline person to person contact, with the admin support is no more or less amenable to automation than the admin support of any other large organisation.

Reply 14

username1148663

Original post by nexttime

Diagnostics in medical care are one of the roles at risk from automation

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 15

JamesN88

"The report argues that public services should become more flexible by embracing a gig economy"

The whole public sector on a zero hours contract. That's some Thatcherite porn right there.

Reply 16

nexttime

Original post by paul514

Diagnostics in medical care are one of the roles at risk from automation

They've been saying that for 20 years.

All other admin roles in existence would be easier. At least 50 years away.

Reply 17

Jammy Duel

Original post by JamesN88

"The report argues that public services should become more flexible by embracing a gig economy"

The whole public sector on a zero hours contract. That's some Thatcherite porn right there.

Not at all, about 90% of administrative jobs would be gone, but we're a long way off AI that could replace the policy teams and all the levels of management, of which there are too many.

Posted from TSR Mobile

Dey t'k o'r jerbs

Volunteer Section Leader

It's worth noting that something often overlooked - at least in headlines - is that these robots will also create a number of jobs, whether in development, building, or even monitoring them, amongst other fields.