Skill gap a concern for workers across the globe: UiPath

As the world prepares for a new normal post the Covid-19 pandemic, at least half of office goers (47%) are afraid of losing their jobs within the next five years due to outdated skills, a survey by robotic process automation (RPA) solution provider UiPath shows.

The New York-based company surveyed 4,500 office workers across the world and found that 86% of the employees wish that their employer help them acquire new skills. And, some 83% of employees want their employers to give them more opportunities to enhance their current skills.

Analytics, automation, and artificial intelligence (AI) skills have seen a rise in demand recently, given the economic downturn brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Read: UiPath rolls out updates to aid enterprises with hyperautomation

Around 35% of workers globally want to gain data analytics skills, while 22% of global workers are eager to grasp the concept of robotic process automation (RPA). 

Nearly 70% of the workers believe automation can increase productivity, and 52% of them say it can enable a better work/life balance.

Additionally, 83% of office workers say they are interested in learning about machine learning (ML) and AI, with 78% noting that ML/AI skills could benefit their career.

Adressing skills gap at the workplace will not only benefit the employee but will also help the organisation. About 80% of workers  believe that learning new skills will help them in being more productive, the survey said.

Read: Enterprises in Europe, US to up RPA spends in 2020: UiPath Forrester survey

In April, UiPath offered its software to accelerate critical processes and free employees in healthcare organisations from repetitive tasks so they can rapidly respond to issues related to Covid-19.