Dive Brief:
- Mail carrier, word processor and meter reader top the list of CareerCast’s 2016 Most Endangered Jobs Report. Disc jockey, jeweler and insurance underwriter also made the list, as did broadcaster and seamstress.
- Americans can expect to see fewer mail carriers during the next eight years. The U.S. Bureau of Statistics reports a steep 28% decline in their employment by 2024. About 136,000 workers will be affected, says CareerCast. The decline began in the early 2000s, as more people replaced letters with email and text messaging, says Kyle Kensing, online content editor at CareerCast. Automation could ultimately replace postal sorting and processing.
- Meter readers, disc jockeys and newspaper reporters will feel the sting of automation, too, says CareerCast. Utility companies can gauge meters remotely, and digital publishing is overtaking print media in many respects.
Dive Insight:
As technology changes, some jobs fade away. But when jobs become obsolete, the business world can look to savvy entrepreneurs to develop new ones. Some of that is already happening in tech firms.
Finding workers with the right skills is key, though particularly difficult for some industries currently. Businesses can ensure that the workforce has the skilled workers they need by working on training initiatives with the academic community.
