Automation and the Future of the African American Workforce

Across the United States, companies are working toward automating repetitive jobs by employing algorithms that can execute administrative tasks, drones that can deliver goods, and robots that can streamline manufacturing. The effect of automation is widespread—grocery stores are installing self-checkout kiosks and truck drivers are gradually ceding ground to autonomous driving technology.

While driverless long-haul trucking may still be some distance away from becoming an everyday reality, at a micro level, people in support-related roles like administrative support, helpers, operatives, and laborers are directly impacted.

Such a scenario leaves African Americans particularly vulnerable since they are more likely to be employed in jobs that are at risk of being automated within the next two decades and those that cannot be performed remotely. Automation trends are also widening the traditional, well-documented racial wealth gap between African Americans and white families in the United States. By attempting to transition the general US workforce to automation, existing disparities in income, wealth, and opportunities are likely to become much worse.

Why are African Americans Vulnerable?

Even though diversity and inclusion are sources of competitive advantage, representation of the African American workforce follows a trend opposite to that of the general population in the United States.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics,

• African Americans represent only 13% of the labor workforce compared to 77% of Whites. This is a clear indication of the existing disparity and discrimination.
• African Americans hold only 34% of management, professional, and related occupations as compared to 43% of Whites.

There are ongoing efforts to improve diversity and inclusion in the workplace. Nevertheless, disparities still exist and progress has been slow, especially in certain industries.

While a majority of the general population is employed in directive roles, African Americans are overwhelmingly employed in support roles. This alone worsens racial wealth inequity because the average wage for support roles is $32,000 compared to the average wage for directive roles, which is $69,000.

In addition, automation is expected to reduce approximately 53% of the time spent on support functions. Thus, African Americans are particularly susceptible to the changing market. 

• Historically, African Americans have faced barriers to accessing educational and job opportunities. This limits their ability to adapt to the changes brought about by automation. 
• They are constantly overrepresented in certain low-skilled and low-paying occupations. Examples: manufacturing work, support jobs, and personal care and service. Meanwhile, they are underrepresented in high-skilled and high-paying occupations. Examples: technology, engineering, and management.
• Even if they are looking to transition to a high-paying job, their current qualifications are insufficient. They are not paid enough to access the education they need to move to a high-paying job. 
• Additionally, African Americans face a persistent wage gap compared to their white counterparts. The median weekly earnings of African American workers are approximately 82% of those of White workers. 

One way to practically address these issues is by ensuring that African Americans have the opportunity to develop new skills and access the education needed to succeed in the new landscape. This may include investments in education and job training programs, as well as efforts to increase access to opportunities in high-paying fields like technology and engineering.

Benefits of a Diverse Workforce

Retraining African American workers in five occupation categories (Office & Administrative Support, Production, Food Preparation and Serving-Related, Sales & Related, and Transportation and Moving Materials) would reduce almost 60% of the risk of job displacement.

The benefits of a diverse workforce are manifold:

• Organizations can benefit from the diverse viewpoints that their African American employees can bring in, breeding innovation and thereby increasing their reach in the global market. 
  
• By improving opportunities for African Americans, the economy becomes more innovative and resilient due to the diverse workforce. It can provide a range of perspectives and ideas for addressing challenges and promoting growth.

• Increased competitiveness in the job market and improved earnings will lead to increased consumer spending, thereby improving the economy at large. 
  

Opportunities to Retrain

The private sector, public sector, and social sector are required to collaborate to enable African Americans to receive retraining opportunities that will enable them to join strategic and value-add job roles.

Some ways in which retraining opportunities can be promoted are:

Double down on Diversity and Inclusion programs
Diversity in the workplace has repeatedly proven to be effective. It fosters innovation, breeds creativity and introduces new perspectives that can efficiently solve business challenges. It also helps minority groups reach out to a diverse customer segment, thereby improving its market appeal and competitiveness. Corporations already have diversity and inclusion programs. However, Black executives still find it difficult to navigate the corporate world due to poor representation. 

According to a review by The Washington Post of 50 companies that took the pledge to address racial inequality, Black employees constitute only a "strikingly small fraction" of top executives. Further, companies that have hired diversity chiefs to improve Black representation often don’t feel empowered to make the right decisions. It has almost become a necessity to make it a corporate responsibility and promote diversity in leadership positions. 

Investment in Education and Job Training

Providing education and job training programs to help minority workers acquire in-demand skills can close the skill gap and open a new world of opportunities for them. This can mitigate the effects of automation on minority communities and help them stay competitive in the changing work landscape.

Further, job training programs can even help African Americans transition to new industries and careers by equipping them with the skills and knowledge necessary to make the switch. This may include programs that focus on:

Digital skills that have a high demand in the market such as data analytics, coding, and digital marketing. For instance, Etsy provides three-month scholarships to African American women to upskill them in programming skills. To date, the company has increased the number of women in its engineering team by 500% through its training programs.

Technical skills such as robotics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning since they are in high demand as automation becomes more widespread.

Soft skills such as communication, problem-solving, and collaboration. These are becoming increasingly pivotal as jobs become more reliant on technology and automation.

Entrepreneurship skills such as innovation, risk-taking, and financial management. This will help create self-employment opportunities and businesses in the face of automation.

Schemes to promote education in high-demand fields among African Americans:

Low-income African American workers or underemployed workers can be provided educational aids to improve accessibility to community colleges and be introduced to new educational programs to help them get job-ready. The U.S. government offers a range of schemes to help African Americans in the changing workplace landscape, including workforce development programs, vocational and technical training programs, apprenticeships, financial assistance programs, and affirmative action programs. For example, The Kansas Advanced Manufacturing Program offers employer-driven training courses in advanced-manufacturing industries by working with public workforce agencies, industry groups, and colleges.

Sensitizing  employees

There may be unintentional microaggressions and discrimination in the workplace. Therefore, regularly sensitizing employees and consciously promoting inclusivity can be game-changing. This can be done through coaching and workshops that enable employees to work in diverse environments without offending others or suffering discrimination.

Improve the accessibility to growth:

Career training can be achieved through mentorship programs, internships, tie-ups with good recruitment agencies and outreach to African American communities. Existing successful employees/leaders in African American communities can pave the way for more such individuals to come to the forefront. They are aware of the problems faced by individuals in the community. They have also successfully tackled them. Hence, their mentorship and contribution to the community can help a great deal to shatter the glass ceiling.

Conclusion

Automation and technological advancements bring many benefits to the workplace. Yet, the effect it has on increasing the disparity in wealth, income, and opportunities between African American workers and White workers cannot be overlooked. Organizations and leaders need to actively intervene to help them thrive through these changes. This is the perfect time to rethink DEI strategies.

Helping African Americans navigate the impacts of automation has several economic benefits. For organizations, it is, increased productivity, decreased inequality, and improved competitiveness. Addressing disparities and promoting an equitable workplace supports building a stronger and more resilient economy for all.

Cogent Staffing can help businesses build a diverse, inclusive, and advanced workforce to meet their evolving requirements. Click here to read more about how Cogent Staffing can help with retraining needs to sensitize professionals to racial inequities and enable a commitment to DEI initiatives.

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