Filenews 2 February 2025 - by Theano Thiopoulou
Technological change, especially artificial intelligence, geo-economic fragmentation, economic uncertainty, demographic changes and the green transition – individually or in combination – are among the main drivers expected to shape and transform the global labour market by 2030.
The Future of Jobs 2025 report gathers and analyses the views of 1,000 leading global employers—collectively representing more than 14 million workers across 22 industries and 55 economies around the world—to examine how these trends are impacting jobs, skills, and the workforce transformation strategies employers plan to pursue. during horizon 2025 to 2030.
One might ask: can a small labour market, such as that of Cyprus, be directly affected by developments on the world map?
The answer is probably simple. In the era of globalization, where all businesses face common challenges, the workforce of Cyprus could not remain unaffected by the rapid onslaught of new technologies and not affect the profile of employees that businesses will be looking for.
According to the "Future of Jobs 2025" report, which delves into the future of work over the next five years, the global labour market is being reshaped, driven by technological development, the green transition, economic and demographic changes.
Skills for survival
Based on the survey results, employers expect 4 out of 10 basic skills required in the labour market to change by 2030. The increasing focus on continuous learning, reskilling and upskilling programs will allow companies to better anticipate and manage future demands, says the Future of Jobs 2025 report.
New professions and opportunities
Technology – and especially artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics – is leading to the creation of new professional opportunities. Roles related to software development and data analysis top the list, as documented in the report:
- Big Data Specialists: analyzing huge amounts of data to make strategic decisions.
- Software Developers: Creating digital solutions for businesses and consumers.
- FinTech Engineers: Design applications for the financial sector, such as digital banks and blockchains.
- Network security analysts: Protection of systems from cyberattacks.
- UX/UI designers: Improving the user experience in a digital environment.
Labour and sustainable practices
The transition to more sustainable practices creates new job opportunities, especially in areas related to renewable energy and environmental management. Professions projected to be in increasing demand in this sector, according to the report, are:
- Renewable Energy Engineers: Design and development of solutions for solar, wind and hydropower.
- Environmental Engineers: Resource management to reduce the environmental footprint.
- Autonomous and electric vehicle specialists: Development and improvement of low-carbon vehicles.
- Photovoltaic installation technicians: Specialized professionals for the installation of solar energy systems.
We are getting older, we want care!
According to the report, demographic changes, such as an ageing population, are increasing demand for health- and education-related occupations. Thus, in the humanitarian sector professions with high demand are predicted to be:
- Nurses and health care specialists: Need to support older people and people with chronic diseases.
- Social workers: Strengthening social cohesion through the provision of support services.
- Secondary and tertiary school teachers: Particularly in demand in developing economies with young populations.
- Early Childhood Education Specialists: Basic Education for Young Children in a Changing World.
Food production – distribution
Food processing and distribution are expected to increase as global food needs increase. Professions at the top of this sector are:
- Food processing workers: Food production, preservation and distribution.
- Food machine operation employees: Use of automated machines to process and package products. Automation in this area is expected to boost productivity, but requires specialization and continuous training.
15 professions on the "up"
What are the current occupations that may be affected, according to the report, to diversify the labour market?
- Clerical and secretarial staff. Cashiers, ticketing clerks, administrators, assistant and executive secretaries and others are industries that are expected to see the largest decline in absolute numbers. Also, businesses offering postal services, bank tellers and data entry clerks are also specialties that are expected to be affected. Combining estimates from companies surveyed, the report lists 15 occupations that will see the greatest growth, followed by a decline.
According to the table of the report, the professions that will survive the next five years are: - Farmers top the list, as manual work is difficult to replace (fully) by robots (at least in the foreseeable future).
- Drivers and distribution services, software and document developers, construction workers, shop sellers round out the top five.
- In sixth place are food processing workers, followed by car, truck and motorcycle drivers, professional nurses, food and beverage serving workers, general and business managers, social work professionals, project managers, university and higher education teachers, secondary school instructors and care assistants.
All 15 that are on a downward trend
The professions which, according to the report, will have a downward trend are:
– Cashiers and ticket clerks, administrative assistants and executive secretaries, building foremen, cleaners and housekeepers, material and stockkeeping clerks, and the top five are completed by printing and related workers.
They are followed by accountants and payroll clerks, accountants and auditors, transport attendants and collectors, security guards, bank tellers and related employees, data importers, information and customer service officers, graphic designers, business services and administration managers, examiners and claims investigators.
What technology can't do
According to the survey, nearly 70% of companies plan to hire new workers with skills to design AI tools and improvements, and 62% plan to hire more skilled people to work better alongside AI, according to the latest survey.
Some tech companies, such as file storage service Dropbox and language learning app Duolingo, cite artificial intelligence as a reason for layoffs.
However, many low-skilled jobs unrelated to AI will survive. Hotels could start using an AI chatbot (a form of software that can be used either on a website or in an app that uses machine learning and natural language processing) instead of a concierge, but this chatbot can't unload luggage from a car or offer other services to customers.
Restaurants could use an iPad to order, but someone still needs to prepare the food and serve it to customers. The same applies to beauty salons and professions that involve caring for people, such as childcare centers, nursing homes, hostels and hospitals.
