## Tomorrow's Workplace

_IMF Blog, May 31, 2017_

## Source details

**Canonical URL:** [Tomorrow's Workplace](https://www.imf.org/en/blogs/articles/2017/05/31/tomorrows-workplace)

## Other formats

- [Markdown version](/en/blogs/articles/2017/05/31/tomorrows-workplace/index.md)
- [Structured JSON version](/en/blogs/articles/2017/05/31/tomorrows-workplace/index.json)
- [Bundle manifest](/en/blogs/articles/2017/05/31/tomorrows-workplace/bundle-manifest.json)

## Bibliographic details
- Published: May 31, 2017

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### Overview and context
- Publication date: May 31, 2017
- Theme: Millennials and the future of work; impacts of technology and economic conditions on young adults
- Platform: IMFBlog — a forum for views of IMF staff and officials
- Institutional note: The IMF is based in Washington D.C. and is "an organization of 191 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation and financial stability around the world."

### Changing nature of work
- Traditional trajectory: Baby boomers and Generation Xers often secured regular full-time jobs with benefits such as paid leave and a generous pension.
- Current reality for millennials:
  - Increased difficulty securing full-time jobs.
  - Greater prevalence of work in the "sharing economy."
  - "About 40 percent of independent workers in the United States who make a living as freelancers are millennials," according to New York University professor Arun Sundararajan.

### Macroeconomic headwinds for millennials
- Timing: Millennials entered the workforce "during the most severe global economic crisis since the Great Depression."
- Youth unemployment: In many countries, youth unemployment "spiked at over 20 percent of the work force," and "it remains stubbornly high."
- Long-term financial challenges cited:
  - Rapidly escalating cost of education.
  - Delayed home ownership.
  - Uncertainty of retirement income.
- Consequence: "Millennials will play financial catch-up for years to come, and will bear much greater personal responsibility for their financial future than their parents," write Lisa Dettling and Joanne Hsu from the US Federal Reserve.

### Technology: opportunities and risks
- Positive: The digital economy "has enabled the creation of millions of new jobs."
- Negative / risk: "Artificial intelligence and robotics may soon displace even complex human activities such as driving a car, providing health care, and giving legal advice."
- Implication: "Staying competitive in tomorrow’s economy will therefore require lifelong learning," writes the IMF’s Nagwa Riad.

### Millennial perspectives
- Voices: Five millennials from around the world were asked for their views.
- Highlighted quote from Kathy Gong of China: "Our future depends on the young people because they are at the core of creativity, the force behind breakthrough innovation, advocates for a fairer society, and drivers of economic growth and societal improvement."
- Tone: Optimism paired with determination to create a better society.

### Key takeaways
- Structural shift in employment patterns toward freelance and sharing-economy work; specific statistic: "About 40 percent" of U.S. independent workers who earn a living as freelancers are millennials.
- Persistent labor market damage from the global economic crisis; specific observation: youth unemployment "spiked at over 20 percent of the work force."
- Millennials face compounded financial pressures — education costs, housing delays, retirement uncertainty — implying prolonged "financial catch-up."
- Technological change presents both job creation and displacement risks; response emphasized: lifelong learning.

*Source: IMFBlog post "Tomorrow's Workplace", May 31, 2017.*

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## Content in this bundle

- **Millennials and the Future of Work - FINANCE & DEVELOPMENT June 2017 - IMF**
  - [Millennials and the Future of Work - FINANCE & DEVELOPMENT June 2017 - IMF (Markdown version)](/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2017/06/pdf/fd0617.pdf.md){rel="alternate" type="text/markdown"}
  - [Millennials and the Future of Work - FINANCE & DEVELOPMENT June 2017 - IMF (PDF)](/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2017/06/pdf/fd0617.pdf){rel="external" type="application/pdf"}

---

## References

- [Finance & Development](http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2017/06/index.htm)
- [Millennials face myriad challenges](http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2017/06/burke.htm)
- [changing nature of work itself](http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2017/06/sundararajan.htm)
- [uncertainty of retirement income](http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2017/06/soto.htm)
- [financial catch-up](http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2017/06/dettling.htm)
- [lifelong learning](http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2017/06/riad.htm)
- [five millennials from around the world](http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2017/06/youth.htm)

_Source: https://www.imf.org/en/blogs/articles/2017/05/31/tomorrows-workplace_