The focus of this essay is to discuss the impact machines and technology are having in French workplaces, addressing both the changes that have taken place and French society\u2019s reactions to the Information Age.\u00a0 Specifically, the focus will be on how machinery has impacted the retail industry; how artificial intelligence is being used in the translation sector; and how technological advancements are radicalising transport. Whilst discussing the effects of new technological developments, this essay will explore the benefits and disadvantages that these changes will have for French society.<\/p>\n
When Emmanuel Macron became president, he wanted France to \u2018think and move like a start-up\u2019 (Wilkins. C, 2018), suggesting that France should start thinking like a new business and engaging with what the country needs to develop in order to increase its economy in the modern age. One of Macron\u2019s biggest goals is to make France, after \u201830 years of underperformance on innovation\u2019 (Vinocur.N, 2018), one of Europe\u2019s leading nations in the technology industry. Governmental investments in recent years have been made to modernise the private and public sectors of France; this has supported \u2018Macron\u2019s bid to make Paris the innovation heart of Europe\u2019 (Wilkins. C, 2018). One of these investments was promised by Macron in 2018, when he proposed the funding of \u2018\u20ac1.5 billion into artificial intelligence research through to 2022\u2019 (Wilkins. C, 2018).\u00a0 It seems that Macron\u2019s dedication to technological innovation is paving the way for France\u2019s younger generation as they embark on new career paths. In a recent survey, \u201850% of French youths aged 18-24, and 70% of students at the \u00c9cole Polytechnique, France\u2019s flagship technical university, want to go work for startups rather than enterprises\u2019 (Evans. J, 2018). This suggests that the value of innovation and growth is being recognised as integral to France\u2019s future development, and that new technology will be at the forefront of future workplaces.<\/p>\n
One sector where new technology is already being implemented is in public transport. After the high amount of road deaths in France, France decided to try and make their roads safer by introducing self-driving cars (local.fr, 2016). By removing the driver from the car, the possibilities of human errors occurring due to delayed reactions, poor judgments, anger, and tiredness are eliminated. By implementing automated vehicles on the road that can recognise the traffic systems and procedures, the danger of such errors is lessened and a safer road experience is created for people, especially as the driverless vehicle can senor and detect any problems faster than a human (International Transfer Forum, 2019, p.16). With benefits such as this increased road safety, France made a substantial investment, \u2018of 40million euros\u2019, to initiate the use of automated vehicles in the public transport sector (Signla, 2018). The theories had been presented, the technology had been funded, all that needed to be proven is that this change would truly enhance the way citizens used public transport.<\/p>\n
The tests began in Paris, where a trial using a driverless bus commenced to gauge whether the French market responded favourably. Initially, reactions were extremely positive to the trial, which was concluded by a 2017 survey that reported \u201897% [of French citizens] said they were satisfied with the service and 88% said they would use the minibus again\u2019 (Wiesmayer. P, 2019). However, it seems that the longevity of the automated service bus was still under question, as the public began to lose interest in the novelty of this vehicle and, more crucially, it was considered \u2018simply too slow\u2019 (Wiesmayer. P, 2019).\u00a0 For the busy schedule of the Parisians, speed of transportation is a must and the \u2018M\u00e9tro is the cheapest, easiest and fastest way to get around Paris\u2019 (Paris Bureau, n.d). Any new technology would have to meet the demands of the public\u2019s lifestyle for it to be successful and accepted as progress, and speed is a high priority for most modern workforces. French companies clearly still need to perfect their products in the autonomous vehicles industry if they are going to radicalise transport in the next few years. With publicised incidents such as the Navya vehicles accident, in which \u2018a driverless bus struck a pedestrian in Vienna\u2019 (J. Tirone, 2019), making the claims of improved road safety inconclusive, it may be a while before French citizens accept autonomous vehicles as the future of transport and set the example for other countries.<\/p>\n
Another sector hit by artificial intelligence, is the retail sector. We can already witness jobs such as cashiers progressively being replaced by self-checkout tills. In France \u2018of 3,299 stores studied across the country, 1,887 – or 57% – now have at least one self-service till installed\u2019 (Crouzel. C, 2019). It is easy to understand why there is such a vast installation rate of self-checkout tills in modern markets, where high-speed service is very appealing to customers, as consumers primarily use these new self-checkouts for the sake of speed and efficiency (Vialeron. R, 2019). Self-checkout tills offer many advantages to businesses: the size difference means it creates more space in the shop, which means there is more room for products to be sold, and the stores require less personnel by having the self-checkout service (Pratt. M, 2015). It\u2019s not a surprise that it has grabbed the attention of retail businesses such as Casino, who \u2018for the first time, was open in the afternoon without a cashier\u2019 (\u2018Crouzel. C, 2019).\u00a0 However, whilst the use of these machines may seem beneficial for the rate of service, the absence of human interaction can also cause many issues as there is less supervision, which would likely increase the chances of theft (Pratt. M, 2015). This suggests roles within the retail sector are becoming less about face-to-face customer service, which demands a higher amount of staff, and more about supervising multiple machines and overseeing customers\u2019 interactions with them (acting more like security guards than sales staff).<\/p>\n
It is not just in-store that machines are being turned to for sales productivity. Recently, because of the rapid increase of France\u2019s development in artificial intelligence, large retailers have implemented the of use delivery drones. Big retail company\u2019s like \u2018Amazon have set up a research center in Ile-De-France\u2019 (Compte. K, 2017) to start their project on delivery drones, stating that they will be \u2018providing rapid parcel delivery that will also increase the overall safety and efficiency of the transportation system\u2019 (Amazon Prime Air). However, ahead of them, is \u2018La Poste\u2019 pointing out difficulties such as the longevity of the batteries which restricts them in flying long distances and that even though the cost of the drone is cheaper than hiring a delivery driver the drones still require pilots to drive the drones, making them less cost effective (Godard. B, 2017). If companies are to continue with drone delivery projects, it will mean employing people with more technical skills and abilities, meaning that rather it being \u2018a question of job loss, it is a question of job transformation\u2019 (Martin. N, 2018).<\/p>\n
The crucial debate is whether the fast-growing development of artificial intelligence will have a positive or a negative impact in the workplace. As has been discussed, French workplaces have already started to replace unskilled or semi-skilled job roles with machines. However, many of the jobs that have started to be replaced are \u2018traditionally more performed by people who have a certain level of education\u2019 (Martin. N, 2018). Translation requires highly skilled professionals and it \u2018is sometimes avoided because it is considered to be too expensive\u2019 (Craciunescu et al, 2004). For a long time, France has been interested in machine translation. In 1933, France was \u2018awarded a patent for a \u201cmechanical brain\u201d that could translate words and combinations of words\u2019 (Schairer. K, p.96).\u00a0 Fast-forward to the 21st<\/sup> century, and now \u2018it\u2019s clear that the quality of the translations produced by machine translation is improving at a fast pace\u2019 (Smartcat, 2019). Machine translation has become attractive for its ease, speed and cost effectiveness. However, human translation still provides a better quality of work and can understand the cultural references that a machine is incapable of (Omer. A, 2017). The future of this service may lie in a marrying of human and machine translation. Human translation requires an initial draft, followed by a final review to make corrections and produce the final piece (Craciunescu et al, 2004). By the machine producing the draft, and the human rectifying any errors in the first stage of the translation the process of accurate and culturally sensitive translation could be quickened, making it cheaper and more reliable for the customer.<\/p>\n Even though the young citizens from countries with high levels of economic growth are optimistic and looking forward to changes, the youth in France are not (Robin. J, 2018).The biggest concern amongst the French about the rise of artificial intelligence is the decrease of employment, as it is predicted that \u2018by 2025, 20% of the tasks could be automated, thus threatening the elimination of 3 million employees in France\u2019 (Laurent. A, 2017). Concerns have been shared that, with machines having such a big role in the workplace, it is likely working conditions will worsen and wages will be lowered as humans cannot compete against their robot counterparts (Martin. N, 2018).<\/p>\n Whilst these problems may affect some employment opportunities in France, the introduction of more technology in certain sectors will create new prospects for employees. As has been discussed, French society will only accept the implementation of new machinery if they value the speed, cost effectiveness and reliability that it promises. Instead of reducing jobs, these changes require employees to adapt, as there could be more call for technical roles that allow human employees to work alongside, rather than be replaced by, machines. As \u2018the countries with the most robots (Japan, Korea, Germany and Sweden) are also the ones with the least unemployment\u2019 (Laurent. 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Machine Translations \u2013 What You Get With Each\u2019<\/em>, eLearning Industry, 20\/09\/2017, https:\/\/elearningindustry.com\/human-vs-machine-translations-get<\/a>, (Accessed 3rd January 2020)<\/p>\n Bruno Godard, \u2018Livraison par drone : la Poste bat Amazon !\u2019<\/em>, Capital FR, 1\/05\/2017, Available at:\u00a0https:\/\/www.capital.fr\/lifestyle\/livraison-par-drone-la-poste-bat-amazon-1230279<\/a>, (Accessed: 19th<\/sup>\u00a0 November 2019)<\/p>\n C\u00e9cile Crouzel, \u2018<\/em>L\u2019hypermarch\u00e9 sans caissier de Casino fait des remous\u2019<\/em>, Le figaro, 25\/08\/2019, https:\/\/www.lefigaro.fr\/economie\/l-hypermarche-sans-caissier-de-casino-fait-des-remous-20190825<\/a>, (Accessed 27th<\/sup>\u00a0December 2019)<\/p>\n Charlotte Wilkins, \u2018Could Macron and Brexit make Paris Europe’s tech\u2019 capital?\u2019<\/em>, France 24, 13\/04\/2019\u00a0<\/em>https:\/\/www.france24.com\/en\/20190413-france-paris-macron-brexit-tech-capital-european-station-f<\/a>\u00a0(Accessed: 27th<\/sup>\u00a0December 2019)<\/p>\n France in the United Kingdom, \u2018France aims to put tech at heart of its economy by 2020\u2019,<\/em>\u00a001\/07\/2014, https:\/\/uk.ambafrance.org\/France-aims-to-put-tech-at-heart<\/a>,\u00a0(Accessed: 19TH<\/sup>\u00a0November 2019)<\/p>\n International transport forum ,\u2018Safer Roads with Automated Vehicles?\u2019<\/em>, International transport forum, n.d, https:\/\/www.itf-oecd.org\/sites\/default\/files\/docs\/safer-roads-automated-vehicles.pdf<\/a>, (Accessed 29th December 2019)<\/p>\n Jean-Pierre Robin, \u2018Robots et nouvelles technologies feront perdre 5 millions d’emplois d’ici \u00e0 2020\u2019<\/em>, Le Figaro, 18\/01\/2016,\u00a0https:\/\/www.lefigaro.fr\/conjoncture\/2016\/01\/18\/20002-20160118ARTFIG00157-robots-et-nouvelles-technologies-feront-perdre-5-millions-d-emplois-d-ici-a-2020.php<\/a>\u00a0(Accessed: 27th<\/sup>\u00a0December 2019)<\/p>\n Jonathan Tirone, \u2018Driverless Bus Hits Pedestrian in Vienna, Interrupting Trials\u2019, Bloomberg.com, 19\/07\/2019, https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2019-07-19\/driverless-bus-hits-pedestrian-in-vienna-interrupting-trials<\/a>\u00a0 (Accessed: 5th<\/sup> January 2020)<\/p>\n Jon Evans, \u2018<\/em>Liberty, equality, technology: France is finally poised to become a tech power, Tech Crunch\u2019<\/em>, 07\/15\/2018,\u00a0https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/2018\/07\/15\/liberty-equality-technology-france-is-finally-poised-to-become-a-tech-power\/<\/a>\u00a0(Accessed 30th<\/sup>\u00a0December 2019)<\/p>\n Kevin Compte, \u2018<\/em>Livraison par drone : Amazon installe un centre de recherche en Ile-De-France\u2019<\/em>, Capital FR, 18\/05\/2017,\u00a0https:\/\/www.capital.fr\/entreprises-marches\/livraison-par-drone-amazon-installe-un-centre-de-recherche-en-ile-de-france-1228469<\/a>\u00a0(Accessed 30th December 2019)<\/p>\n Nicholas Vinocur, \u2018Macron\u2019s \u20ac1.5 billion plan to drag France into the age of artificial intelligence\u2019<\/em>, Politico.eu, 04\/14\/2018, https:\/\/www.politico.eu\/article\/macron-aims-to-drag-france-into-the-age-of-artificial-intelligence\/<\/a>, (Accessed 30th<\/sup> December 2019)<\/p>\n Nicolas Martin, \u2018L\u2019intelligence artificielle va-t-elle d\u00e9truire des emplois ?\u2019,<\/em>\u00a0<\/em>France culture, 11\/08\/2018, \u00a0https:\/\/www.franceculture.fr\/emissions\/les-idees-claires\/lintelligence-artificielle-va-t-elle-detruire-des-emplois<\/a>, (Accessed: 29th<\/sup>\u00a0November 2019)<\/p>\n Olivia Craciunescu, Constanza Gerding-Salas, Susan Stringer-O’Keeffe, \u2018Machine translation and computer-assisted translation\u2019<\/em>, Translators & Computers, 06\/2004, http:\/\/www.mt-archive.info\/TranslationJ-2004-Craciunescu.pdf<\/a>, (Accessed 3rd<\/sup> July 2020)<\/p>\n Paris Bureau, \u2018Public transport\u2019<\/em>, Paris Info, n.d, https:\/\/en.parisinfo.com\/practical-paris\/how-to-get-to-and-around-paris\/public-transport<\/a> (Accessed 29th<\/sup> December 2019)<\/p>\n Peter Siga, \u2018France pushes for ‘highly automated’ vehicles by 2022\u2019<\/em>, Automotive News Europe, 08\/08\/2018, https:\/\/europe.autonews.com\/article\/20180808\/ANE\/180809840\/france-pushes-for-highly-automated-vehicles-by-2022<\/a>,\u00a0(Accessed: 19th<\/sup>\u00a0November 2019)<\/p>\n Petra Wiesmayer, \u2018<\/em>Self-driving buses: Paris ends experiment after two years\u2019, <\/em>Innovating Origins, 08\/08\/2019, https:\/\/innovationorigins.com\/self-driving-buses-paris-ends-experiment-after-two-years\/<\/a>, Richard Vialeron, \u2018<\/em>Les caisses sans caissier de plus en plus r\u00e9pandues dans les supermarch\u00e9s\u2019<\/em>, Le Figaro, 15\/07\/2019,\u00a0https:\/\/www.lefigaro.fr\/conso\/les-caisses-sans-caissier-de-plus-en-plus-repandues-dans-les-supermarches-20190715<\/a> ( Accessed 2nd<\/sup> January 2020)<\/p>\nBibliography<\/h2>\n
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