CIPM charges employees to prepare for automation threats

The Chartered Institute of Personnel Management (CIPM) has urged employees to brace up for the threats posed by emerging Artificial Intelligence (AI), robotics and automation.

The institute also urged workers to retool themselves in order not to be shoved aside due to the changing nature and the future of work. The Oyo State Chairman of CIPM, Omolara Onipede, made the call while speaking at an inaugural seminar, organised by the Employment Relation and Human Resources Management Students Association, Department of Sociology, University of Ibadan on the theme ‘The Challenges of Employment Relations in a rapidly Changing World of Work’.

According to her, workers need to develop and acquire skills relevant to the future of work regarding what they presently do and how automation, robotics and AI will be deployed in accomplishing tasks.

Onipede noted that crowd-sourcing and the use of gig workers would gain more grounds, stating that the future of work would become more fluid having a collocated workplace and utilising more remote workers.

Arguing that employment relationship faces numerous challenges in today’s rapidly changing world of work, the CIPM boss listed work-life balance, job insecurity, lack of job satisfaction, income inequality, workplace safety, globalisation and poor working conditions among others.

Employment relations can be improved according to her, if organisations “Put employee experience first, break down walls between managers and employees, provide formal management training, celebrate successes, don’t play favourites, set an example, communicate clearly and often, be approachable, involve your employees, focus on inclusivity, build an official handbook, provide opportunities for employees to leave feedback.”

In his opening remarks, the President of the Employment Relation and Human Resources Management Students body, Department of Sociology, University of Ibadan, Olaniyan Emmanuel said the seminar was important “to know the contemporary things happening in employment relations because the world of work is changing and there is need to make people abreast with challenges going on in the place of work, and more importantly now that technology is taking over almost everything.”

The lecture according to him, will enable students and practitioners in the employment relations field to prepare themselves for the changing nature and future of work in other to stay relevant and valuable.