Textile, footwear workers most vulnerable to new technology – PIDS

MANILA, Philippines — Workers in the textile and footwear sector who perform low-skilled and repetitive tasks are most vulnerable to rapid advancements in industrial technology amid the Fourth Industrial Revolution, state-run think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) said.

In a recent forum, PIDS senior research fellow Jose Ramon Albert said most workers doing low-value jobs in the country’s textile, clothing, and footwear sector are women.

“Repetitive tasks can be programmed into computers, and what is not codified today may be codified tomorrow, especially with artificial intelligence,” he said.

“In the case of the Philippines, these repetitive tasks are prevalent in the textile, clothing, and footwear sector, which predominantly employs women. This makes the displacement in this sector gendered,” he added.

PIDS noted emerging technologies such as 3D printing enables textile firms to improve their productivity and output at lower cost and fewer errors.

The think tank said this gender displacement in the workforce could be traced to the lower educational attainment and training of women in scientific and technical disciplines.

To remedy this, the think tank is pushing for the greater training of women in these disciplines.

PIDS said there is a need to capacitate workers this early through various training programs especially those who might be displaced by the increased use of technology in industries.

It also emphasized the need to balance the use of automation and pursuing labor-intensive activities to protect the welfare of workers.