REPORT OF THE Future of Work Commission 2 FUTURE OF WORK COMMISSION Foreword by Tom Watson MP 5 Introduction 6 Executive Summary 9 Chapter 1: Laying the Foundations 23 The Commission’s principles 24 Work is valuable in itself 24 Work should provide dignity 25 Work should offer security 26 Work should promote autonomy 27 Good work should be available to all 28 Measuring good work 29 The need for cooperation 31 Chapter 2: The Trends 33 Lessons from history 34 Wider social and cultural changes 35 Technological changes 36 Digitisation and computing 36 Artificial Intelligence (AI) 37 Robotics 39 Economic changes 41 The pace and scope of change 41 Labour market effects 44 Broader economic effects 50 Chapter 3: Our Recommendations 59 Prioritising good work 60 Skills for the future 67 Promoting innovation 70 New models 75 Labour rights and standards 79 Ethics 84 ANNEX 85 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 94 FUTURE OF WORK COMMISSION 3 FOREWORD Work, and our experience of work, shapes our society and our nation. Work is at the centre of people’s lives, communities and the economy. When it changes, we change too. And the world of work is changing – fast. The single most important driver of this change is the new technological revolution.1 The impact of technological innovation can also be seen across a range of current social and economic trends: real wages are falling, inequality is rising, and productivity growth is slowing. These trends characterise the ‘Britain isn’t daily experience of millions of working people. prepared for the technological This is what the Future of Work Commission, which I convened and co- chaired alongside Helen Mountfield QC, has explored over the past year: revolution. We The future of work in Britain in the context of the technological revolution. must act now.’ Tom Watson MP, We need to face the most pressing challenges and opportunities of the technological revolution in ways that will spread new benefits to every Co-Chair citizen and accelerate transition for the common good. Innovation and social justice should advance together.2 ‘We need to master the new Britain is unprepared for the technological revolution. Our research, technological and that undertaken by individual Commissioners, supports this view. We think this revolution will be at least as great as anything we have revolution seen in the past. The accessibility of technology, the breadth of its to create a applications and the use of huge new data-sets may well increase the revolution in pace of change further. This demands strategic planning: the policy good work.’ choices we make now will shape how technological change continues to Helen Mountfield QC, affect the work and lives of our citizens. Co-Chair We need a sharper and more consistent focus on work that will harness new opportunities and share the benefits of the technological revolution for the common good. Work provides us with an income: wages are the single most important determinant of our living standards. And it is our jobs that connect the living standards of individuals, households and families with the economic growth of our nation. But the work-wage bargain is more than a by-product of the pursuit of profit. Good work sustains us as individuals and binds us as a society. To take full advantage of technological change – to increase and spread its benefits and shape a future which is both prosperous and fair – we need to create, value and sustain good, fairly-paid work for our citizens into the future. This is the best way to champion the British entrepreneurial spirit and buck some of the most troublesome trends we currently face. This goal should be placed at the heart of our policy and political thinking. Doing so will empower people and put citizens at the centre of action. It will contribute to our sense of civic identity and citizenship. And measuring good work will give us a measure of our progress, as a 1 We define ‘technology’ broadly, to include robotics, artificial intelligence society, through the age of technology. This Commission wants Britain (AI) and machine learning (ML), the internet, big data analysis, the internet to take pride in building a future of good work. We must start now. of things, digital technologies; combining and applying these technologies in diverse ways; and also to the collection of techniques, skills, processes and knowledge used by humans in relation to these technologies. Tom Watson MP 2 Our Terms of Reference are set out in Annex 1 Deputy Leader of the Labour Party Convener and Co-Chair, Future of Work Commission FUTURE OF WORK COMMISSION 5 ‘Technological INTRODUCTION progress is transforming our economy, THIS REPORT with significant This report starts from first principles. Chapter 1 explores the meaning consequences for of work. It sets out the foundational principles which define our vision pay, security and of what good work is, and describes how we can measure our progress quality of work. towards it. The need to act is Chapter 2 explores how technology is already transforming work, urgent.’ and the world in which the principles set out in Chapter 1 must be Daniel Susskind, applied to realise our vision of a future of good, fairly paid work as the Commissioner technological revolution unfolds. It identifies the social and economic challenges we must confront and new opportunities for job creation – to increase productivity and make work better. ‘Co-operation This points to a radical rethink of our social, economic and cultural is a model with institutions to manage transition and meet new challenges. The a proven track problems of inequality and job insecurity are not new. But the solutions record. It is will need to be. working around Chapter 3 sets out our recommendations. We explore new priorities the world.’ and new institutions, new rights and new responsibilities. We set out Claire McCarthy, the first steps that can be taken to achieve the social and economic Commissioner conditions which will spread the benefits of technological change and secure a future of good, fairly-paid work available equally to every citizen. ‘The best way One theme runs through this report: co-operation. To harness the to generate opportunities of technological innovation and manage transition in the and spread best possible way, we must rediscover what it means to build a society based on co-operation: one that benefits everyone. Growth, innovation, the benefits and good work, are built together. Missions are fulfilled, and practical of technological solutions built, together. The technological revolution demands that innovation is we work together for our common good, combining our strengths, to create good, and seeing our institutions not just as agents of competition, but of fairly paid work co-operation too. for our citizens.’ Only together can we build a fair, dynamic economy for the common Naomi Climer, good – creating good, fairly paid work through the technological Commissioner revolution for the many, not the few. 6 FUTURE OF WORK COMMISSION WHO WE ARE The independent Future of Work Commission was convened by Tom Watson MP, Deputy Leader of the Labour Party, in September 2016. It is co-chaired by Helen Mountfield QC. This report aims to support policy development. It is independent of the Labour Party and does not represent Labour Party policy. Individual Commissioners are not responsible for specific facts or recommendations. The Commission’s terms of reference and a list of Commissioners are set out in Annex 1. WHAT WE HAVE DONE This year the Commission has: Developed research with Commission economists, machine learning analysts and political philosophers Undertaken new survey research coordinated by the trade union USDAW Called and considered evidence from the public and stakeholders across Britain Hosted three public evidence sessions Collaborated with InnovationRCA, which has hosted an innovation challenge for students and start-ups: Our Place in the World: The Future of Work Commissioned a YouGov poll Participated in workshops, design-thinking, conferences and roundtables, including those hosted by the TUC, Leicester Centre for Sustainable Work and Employment, and Chatham House Joined a public dialogue with our commissioner Michael Sandel at a school in Dagenham aired by the BBC: Would Life Be Better if Robots Did All The Work? Analysed evidence obtained by the Science and Technology, Work and Pensions and BEIS Committees, and all other published material relevant to our mission. In addition, many of our Commissioners have independently undertaken work which is relevant to our terms of reference, some of which is ongoing, and which has informed the Commission’s recommendations. We are grateful to the Commissioners for sharing their work, and to their researchers and institutions for significant support this year. The Commission will continue a dialogue with stakeholders and consult widely on their mission, guiding principles, first recommendations and implementation during through the second phase of work. FUTURE OF WORK COMMISSION 7 8 FUTURE OF WORK COMMISSION | FIRST REPORT: DRAFT EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Work is more than simply a factor in the process of production, like capital or land. It isn’t just something people do in between leisure, family life and sleep, or just to pay the bills. Good work is part of people’s identities. It enriches our lives, and enables us to be fuller and better citizens. It reminds us that we – as individuals, communities, and a society – build our own future. That means that questions about the future of work – questions about how work is changing – are political questions as well as economic ones. Changes to work cannot be left for market forces alone to shape, or thought of purely as business decisions. They affect all of us. And the governments we elect have a responsibility to make sure that the work and lives of the citizens they represent are enhanced, rather than diminished, by technological innovation.