From the U.S. Government Accountability Office, www.gao.gov Transcript for: Preparing for Robot Coworkers and AI Description: This podcast talks about federal agencies’ interest in tracking the effects of advanced technologies to the working population. Related GAO Work: GAO-19-257: Workforce Automation: Better Data Needed to Assess and Plan for Effects of Advanced Technologies on Jobs Released: April 2019 [ Background Music ] [ Cindy Brown Barnes ] The workforce landscape is continuing to change as advanced technologies are developed, and then deployed by companies. [ Matt Oldham: ] Welcome to GAO's Watchdog Report, your source for news and information from the U.S. Government Accountability Office. I'm Matt Oldham. Robotic machines have existed for decades, and it's a safe bet their use will grow as companies look for ways to expand their roles, not just in what tasks they can perform, but also through advanced technologies, like, learning capabilities. I'm with Cindy Brown Barnes, an Education Workforce and Income Security director at GAO, and she led a report looking at how federal agencies are predicting and planning for changes in the workforce coming from these advanced technologies. Thank you for joining me, Cindy. [ Cindy Brown Barnes ] Thank you. [ Matt Oldham ] Are we seeing more immediate changes in the workforce coming from advances in automation? [ Cindy Brown Barnes ] Today's technology innovations are impacting the workforce in striking ways. For example, machine vision, and other artificial intelligence technologies are being incorporated into vehicles, in robots, self-driving vehicles, and warehouses, and hospitals can transport products autonomously. And collaborative robots can work next to humans on a production line. But as a result workers who previously perform these tasks may be replaced by the technologies or redeploy to perform other work tasks that could require the same or different skill. [ Matt Oldham ] So I imagine it could be difficult to forecast the future for technology, like, robotics or artificial intelligence. Did you get the sense that federal agencies have gotten a good start? [ Cindy Brown Barnes ] Federal agencies are aware of the significant role advanced technologies will continue to play in the economy and the workforce. There's not much data available about the extent of the workforce effects. Some federal agencies have started to try to fill this information gap. For example, the Census Bureau, in collaboration with the National Science Foundation, they have a new study called the Annual Business Survey that has the potential to provide some insight on the spread of advanced technologies in the economy, and could be used to examine the workforce effects. And they're other efforts to collect information about workforce effects of advanced technologies, but they're more limited. For example, the Bureau of Labor Statistics that the Department of Labor collects valuable data on workforce trends through various surveys. However, these data again are limited, and they don't have all of the information that's needed to assess the impact of automation on the workforce. [ Background Music ] [ Matt Oldham ] So it sounds like the Census Bureau, and The Department of Labor are two federal agencies that have the most interest in tracking the effects of broader applications of advanced technologies to the working population. Cindy, why is the federal government concerned with the question of how this technology could affect the workplace? [ Cindy Brown Barnes ] The federal government is concerned because advanced technologies have the potential to change the workforce in significant ways. This technology adoption will lead to increases, and or it could in certain circumstances lead to increases in different types of jobs, and in other cases could lead to workforce reductions, either over time or immediately. Regardless of the changes in the workforce, size or workers roles, and responsibilities are likely to change as advanced technologies take over tasks that workers previously performed. To an extent that these changes are concentrated in certain occupations, certain groups of workers, such as those with lower education levels may be disproportionately affected. That's the federal workforce programs will need to be aligned or more aligned to deal with the changing economy, and impact of automation. [ Matt Oldham ] So did your team have any recommendations? [ Cindy Brown Barnes ] Yes. We recommended that the Department of Labor develop ways to use existing or new data collection efforts to identify, and systematically track the workforce effects of advanced technologies. [ Matt Oldham ] Before we get to the traditional last question of our podcasts, I recommend you, the listener, go to gao.gov, search GAO-19-257, and you can see an example of the type of technology that Cindy and I are discussing. You'll see a machine or robotic machine, and it has a face. You know, sometimes these concepts may be a little difficult to visualize, was a very good example in the report of exactly what we're talking about. Okay, Cindy, getting back on track, what do you believe is the bottom line of this report? [ Cindy Brown Barnes ] The workforce landscape is continuing to change as advanced technologies are developed, and then deployed by companies. But without data that can measure the magnitude, and variety of these changes the overall work force effects will remain unclear. [ Matt Oldham ] Cindy Brown Barnes led a GAO report on the role federal agencies are playing to predict, and track workforce issues related to the adoption of advanced technologies. Thank you for your time, Cindy. [ Cindy Brown Barnes ] Thank you. [ Background Music ] [ Matt Oldham: ] And thank you for listening to the Watchdog Report. To hear more podcasts, subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts. [ Background Music ] [ Matt Oldham: ] For more from the congressional watchdog, the U.S. Government Accountability Office, visit us at gao.gov.