The Future of Work

The ubiquitous application of digital technologies in both business and everyday life has coincided with equally striking change in jobs, income and the nature of work itself. While we have seen an explosion of new products, services and efficiencies in recent decades, the same time period has coincided with slower job and income growth. Industries that traditionally provided many quality job opportunities are in decline, while some of the most innovative businesses of today produce relatively few jobs. Some employees connect to work and workplaces in novel ways, while spaces to work, live and play are being joined, reconfigured and required to meet the needs of a changing economy and workforce. As a result, metropolitan regions, including the New York region, may be facing the biggest transformation to the spatial organization of work since the development of the interstate system and the expansion of early telecommunications in the mid-20th century. Over the next twenty-five years, global regions like the New York metropolitan area will need to be creative and proactive to maintain their competitive edge. Telecommuting, economic shifts, and emerging industries could upend the traditional settlement and commutation patterns. Changing rhythms of work as well as climate change may require more flexibility and adaptability from our infrastrcture. As more occupations become vulnerable to partial or total automation, the wage gap between the highly educated and everyone else could grow unsustainably wide. And at the same time, the integration of these technologies into daily life has the potential to reduce social and economic inefficiencies and support a more sustainable way of life.

This briefing paper provides an overview of emerging trends and what implications these trends may hold for the Fourth Regional Plan, through the lens of the future of work.