A few days ago, the book "Labor Market Reform in the Era of Digital Economy" organized by the Labor Market Research Center of Beijing Normal University was released, which is the 12th academic achievement released by the research center to study the development of China's labor market. The book analyzes the main changes in the labor market in the era of digital economy, and provides a scientific basis for strengthening the implementation of the employment-first strategy and promoting the high-quality development of the labor market.
The book proposes that in the era of digital economy, a new generation of information technology continues to penetrate in the fields of production, service and life, which has had a wide impact on the labor market, mainly including expanding the scope of the market, automation and intelligence have both substitution and creative effects on employment, digital platforms have expanded employment space and created new employment methods, and digital skills have become essential skills for workers. With the vigorous development of the digital economy, China's labor market has also shown many new characteristics, and the book summarizes the eight main characteristics of labor market reform in the era of digital economy.
First, the digital economy has led to structural changes in the labor market. The digital economy has had a wide-ranging impact on total employment and employment structure, and has led to structural changes in the labour market. First, the digital economy is conducive to promoting long-term job growth and can have a huge job creation effect. Secondly, the development of the digital economy has brought about structural changes in the types of occupations, and the rapid emergence of digital occupations has promoted the digital transformation of traditional occupations. In addition, the structural changes in the labor market have taken place, the proportion of employment in the digital economy has increased significantly, and with the increase in the demand for talents in high-tech industries, the structural contradictions in the labor market will further increase, and the pace of adjustment and iteration of occupational demand will be highly correlated with the development of the digital economy. The digital economy has also exacerbated the polarization of employment.
Second, the digital economy has expanded the boundaries between employment and work. The expansion of employment boundaries brought about by the digital economy includes the expansion of time and space boundaries, the expansion of employment methods, and the expansion of the scope of hired labor. The expansion of employment boundaries promoted by the digital economy will have an impact on the overall employment of society from multiple perspectives.
Third, digital skills have become an increasingly important threshold for employment. The digital economy is integrated into all aspects of life and work, and the rapid iteration of digital technology has put forward higher requirements for the digital skills mastered by workers. The replacement of certain jobs by artificial intelligence does not mean a massive increase in unemployment. New jobs will also be created as a result of new technologies, and the biggest challenge for workers is how to improve their employability skills to adapt and cope with the coming era of employment change.
Fourth, the digital economy has improved the efficiency of labor market allocation. On the one hand, the digital economy reduces the cost of job search and improves the efficiency of labor market allocation by increasing channels and paths. On the other hand, through the monitoring and upgrading of the platform, the allocation efficiency can be improved while ensuring the stable employment rate, and the development of flexible employment will be promoted while ensuring stable employment. In addition, the digital economy has improved the efficiency of the allocation of the global labor market.
Fifth, the digital economy is a double-edged sword that affects the quality of employment. With the transformation of industrial structure and social attitudes, the way workers work is changing rapidly, with some workers achieving higher-quality employment and others being marginalized in the change of work styles. Digital technology has outstanding advantages in promoting employment equity, employment security, and work-life balance, but in the short term, it may lead to problems such as widening income disparities and challenging the original employment security system. The change in the way of work caused by digital technology is a double-edged sword that affects the quality of employment.
Sixth, the development of digital technology is accompanied by the reshaping of the income distribution pattern. The changes in production methods and employment patterns caused by the deep integration of digital technology and industry will further lead to changes in the pattern of income distribution, and this change will be greater than that of previous scientific and technological revolutions. The skill premium caused by digitalization plays a significant role in some industries and occupations, and digital technology promotes the income expansion of disadvantaged groups with its advantages of convenience and cross-space.
Seventh, new forms of employment based on digital technology challenge traditional labor relations. The new form of employment has problems such as low labor contract signing rate, low social insurance participation rate, and weak collective bargaining ability. The current labor laws and labor relations recognition standards cannot effectively solve the problems of protecting the rights and interests of workers in the context of the "de-labor relations" of new employment, the inability of the social insurance system to effectively cover them, and the lack of negotiation and coordination methods.
Eighth, the digital economy is reshaping labor market governance. The strategy of seizing the highland of the digital economy, especially the highland of talent, has become a global trend, and the role of labor factors in the development of the digital economy is indispensable. With the rapid growth of flexible employment, policies that can adapt to the improvement of the quality of long-term employment, the improvement of labor relations for new employment groups, and the improvement of the coverage and quality of labor security still need to be improved, and various policy combinations, including education, social security, fiscal and financial policies, need to be promoted. (Compiled by Zhang Jing).