Employers and staff are optimistic about the impact of new technologies despite uncertainty about their safety.
A YouGov survey commissioned by British Safety Council among 4,018 UK employers and employees reveals that both employers and employees are optimistic about the impact new technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) will have on their workplace.
The research suggests that decision makers feel more optimistic than staff.
When asked about AI, 63% of 2006 employers said they are optimistic about the impact that this new technology will have on their workforce, compared with 41% of 2012 employees, when asked about its impact on their workplace.
However, just over a quarter (26%) of both employers and employees said that AI would make their workplace ‘less safe’. This compared with the same number of employers (26%) who thought it would make it ‘more safe’ and just 13% of employees.
When asked how likely or unlikely they think it is that their job will be replaced or superseded by AI in the next 10 years, 68% of employees thought it unlikely and just 23% said it was likely. Among the employers, 20% thought less than 10% of their workforce would be replaced by 2034, while 6% of employers did think that over 50% of their workforce could go.
Levels of optimism about the impact of AR and VR were somewhat lower, with 48% and 51% respectively of employers expressing optimism about the impact of both technologies, and just 33% and 31% of employees. Both employers and employees were also more equivocal about how far these would impact people’s safety in the workplace, with around half seeing ‘no change’.
Peter McGettrick, Chairman of British Safety Council, said:
“We commissioned this survey with YouGov to coincide with the 50th Anniversary of the Health and Safety at Work Act and consider what lies ahead for health, safety and wellbeing in the coming half century. The findings show there is clearly more to be done to ensure that both employers and employees not just reap the benefits but are also given reassurance and support on some of the risks.
“While no one can predict the future entirely, change is inevitable. This is why we’re calling on the Government to incentivise companies who invest in new and developing technologies – like AR, VR, and AI – for the purposes of improving workplace health, safety and wellbeing. Alongside this, we want to see more support for training to keep people safe, healthy and well in work.
“Our founder, James Tye, was instrumental in agitating the government of the time to set up a Royal Commission, which ultimately led to the Robens Report that led to the Health and Safety at Work Act. If you fast-forward 50 years, in recent years we’ve been calling for wellbeing to be at the heart of health and safety. Recently, we’ve called on Sir Keir Starmer in his new Government to put a Minister for Wellbeing in the Cabinet.”
