The Covid-19 Pandemic Spurred Growth in Automation: What Does this Mean for Minority Workers?

16 Pages Posted: 3 Mar 2023

See all articles by Kristen Broady

Kristen Broady

Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago

Darlene Booth-Bell

Coastal Carolina University

Anthony Barr

National Bankers Association

Ryan Perry

Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago

Date Written: February 27, 2023

Abstract

The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated trends in automation as many employers seek to save on labor costs amid widespread illness, increased worker leverage, and market pressures to onshore supply chains. While existing research has explored how automation may displace non-specialized jobs, there is typically less attention paid to how this displacement may interact with preexisting structural issues around racial inequality. This analysis updates that of a 2021 Brookings paper by the authors, finding that Black and Hispanic workers continue to be overrepresented in the 30 occupations with the highest estimated risk of automation and underrepresented in the 30 occupations with the lowest estimated risk of automation. The updated analysis also includes new attention to automation’s impact on wage structures, consideration of the broader implications of automation for global economics, and a discussion of the potential interplay of automation with recent developments in artificial intelligence.

Keywords: Race, Automation, Covid-19

JEL Classification: D63, E24, I24, J21, J24, J31, O33

Suggested Citation

Broady, Kristen and Booth-Bell, Darlene and Barr, Anthony and Perry, Ryan, The Covid-19 Pandemic Spurred Growth in Automation: What Does this Mean for Minority Workers? (February 27, 2023). FRB of Chicago Working Paper No. 2023-06, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4368506 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4368506

Kristen Broady (Contact Author)

Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago ( email )

230 South LaSalle Street
Chicago, IL 60604
United States

Darlene Booth-Bell

Coastal Carolina University ( email )

P.O. Box 261954
Conway, SC 29528-6054
United States

Anthony Barr

National Bankers Association ( email )

Washington, DC
United States

Ryan Perry

Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago ( email )

230 South LaSalle Street
Chicago, IL 60604
United States

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