Tech change creates jobs, says Minister

Technological change creates new jobs and opportunities, counterbalancing the impact on traditional employment, according to Assistant Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science Craig Laundy.

Laundy told participants at the Advance Global Australian Awards and Summit in Sydney that technology change allows industries, companies and workers to flourish.

“Headlines about job losses due to technological change make it hard for ordinary people to get excited about digital disruption and globalisation, but a century’s data shows that change creates jobs and opportunities,” he said.

“We’re doing our kids a disservice if we ignore the future jobs being created by technological disruption.”

Laundy said it’s not just start-ups but traditional SMEs that are using disruption to grow their business.

“For example, SA’s historic Coopers Brewery, founded in 1862 and still a family company, recently launched the digital BeerDroid system aimed at home brewers,” he said.

“BeerDroid is a smartphone app that enables home brewers to monitor progress of their brew, and even seek advice from Coopers about the best time to bottle, or how to fix a problem if a brew goes haywire.”

Lundy called on the global entrepreneurs attending the summit to share their networks and expertise to help Australian businesses at any stage of their lives integrate into global value chain.

“This is not about choosing between old and new, or between local and global; we’re in a fight between a future of national prosperity and a future of stagnation, and we are all on the same team,” he said.

Image courtesy of Missy Schmidt under CC