An Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar and Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, Heather Humphreys today convened a Summit of 200 stakeholders at Tangent in Trinity College Dublin to shape the goals of Future Jobs Ireland in 2020.
Future Jobs Ireland, which was launched in March, is the whole-of-Government plan to secure Ireland's economic success in a changing world.
Seven Government Ministers led the consultation event, which was attended by employers, workers and business representative bodies. A keynote address was given by Saadia Zahidi, Managing Director of the World Economic Forum’s Centre for the New Economy and Society.
The discussions at the Summit focused on three specific themes with a view to finalising the key actions in Future Jobs Ireland for 2020 - Transitioning, which is about supporting workers to reskill and upskill where their role or sector is impacted by a changing world; Clustering, which strengthens regions and encourages businesses, Irish and foreign-owned, to work together and learn from each other; and New Modes of Working, which is about exploring remote and flexible working options, as well as expanding the network of digital hubs across the country.
Speaking at the Summit, An Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar said, "The world is changing fast. Technology continues to herald new ways of doing business and new economic opportunities. It is not only the types of jobs that will be changing, but the way that we work. Future Jobs Ireland ensures that as our economy changes, and traditional industries and practices are disrupted, workers and enterprises are able to transition successfully. If we adapt now, our enterprises can stay competitive and our society resilient. If we don’t then we will quickly fall behind."
In her keynote address, Saadia Zahidi from the World Economic Forum added, "The future of jobs will be both more digital and more human. The Irish economy could become a hub for this new wave of talent in the fourth industrial revolution. Most at-risk workers can be promoted into positions with similar skills and higher wages with the right reskilling and upskilling support. If the public and the private sector work together to fundamentally rethink education and training, they can harness the new opportunities of the fourth industrial revolution for workers, companies and the economy broadly."
The Departments of the Taoiseach and Business, Enterprise and Innovation will now take the feedback from the Summit and work collaboratively with Departments and stakeholders to develop commitments for inclusion in Future Jobs Ireland 2020 which is to be launched early in the new year.
Source: www.businessworld.ie
