• Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Supplier Directory
  • SCB YouTube
  • About Us
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • Logout
  • My Profile
  • LOGISTICS
    • Air Cargo
    • All Logistics
    • Facility Location Planning
    • Freight Forwarding/Customs Brokerage
    • Global Gateways
    • Global Logistics
    • Last Mile Delivery
    • Logistics Outsourcing
    • LTL/Truckload Services
    • Ocean Transportation
    • Parcel & Express
    • Rail & Intermodal
    • Reverse Logistics
    • Service Parts Management
    • Transportation & Distribution
  • TECHNOLOGY
    • All Technology
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Cloud & On-Demand Systems
    • Data Management (Big Data/IoT/Blockchain)
    • ERP & Enterprise Systems
    • Forecasting & Demand Planning
    • Global Trade Management
    • Inventory Planning/ Optimization
    • Product Lifecycle Management
    • Robotics
    • Sales & Operations Planning
    • SC Finance & Revenue Management
    • SC Planning & Optimization
    • Supply Chain Visibility
    • Transportation Management
  • GENERAL SCM
    • Business Strategy Alignment
    • Customer Relationship Management
    • Education & Professional Development
    • Global Supply Chain Management
    • Global Trade & Economics
    • Green Energy
    • HR & Labor Management
    • Quality & Metrics
    • Regulation & Compliance
    • Sourcing/Procurement/SRM
    • SC Security & Risk Mgmt
    • Supply Chains in Crisis
    • Sustainability & Corporate Social Responsibility
  • WAREHOUSING
    • All Warehouse Services
    • Conveyors & Sortation
    • Lift Trucks & AGVs
    • Order Management & Fulfillment
    • Packaging
    • RFID, Barcode, Mobility & Voice
    • Warehouse Automation
    • Warehouse Management Systems
  • INDUSTRIES
    • Aerospace & Defense
    • Apparel
    • Automotive
    • Chemicals & Energy
    • Consumer Packaged Goods
    • E-Commerce/Omni-Channel
    • Food & Beverage
    • Healthcare
    • High-Tech/Electronics
    • Industrial Manufacturing
    • Pharmaceutical/Biotech
    • Retail
  • THINK TANK
  • WEBINARS
    • On-Demand Webinars
    • Upcoming Webinars
    • Webinar Library
  • PODCASTS
  • WHITEPAPERS
  • VIDEOS
Home » Robots Are Coming for Europe's Jobs — Especially Out East

Robots Are Coming for Europe's Jobs — Especially Out East

Adapting to Automation: Lessons for Long-Term Success
November 13, 2018
Bloomberg

Robots are coming for people’s jobs in Europe, and the countries in the ex-communist east are particularly vulnerable.

With the use of industrial robots rising globally, the average worker in Slovakia — the world’s top car producer per capita — faces a 62 percent median probability that his or her job will be automated “in the near future,” the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development said Tuesday.

In a report that compared 11 emerging countries with developed economies, the London-based development bank said workers in Lithuania are only slightly less at risk, and the chance hovers at around a coin toss for employees in Slovenia, Poland, the Czech Republic and Estonia. Robots will be most used in textiles, agriculture and manufacturing, it said.

“Technological innovations are quickly shifting the balance between activities performed by humans and tasks performed by machines,” the EBRD said in a report. “In manufacturing, the percentage of jobs that are at risk of automation may be particularly high.”

While some types of work will become obsolete, other jobs in more productive sectors will emerge. Robots will also help fill job shortages in eastern Europe, a region with an ageing population where companies complain that they can’t find enough skilled people to fill open positions, the EBRD said.

The report also noted that the increased use of robots is probably behind a decline in the total employment rates in the 11 countries that were studied. Jobs in agriculture and manufacturing in the region declined 4 percent and 2 percent, respectively, in the decade following 2006, it said.

As for positions going to machines, foreign-direct investment is a main driver. Slovakia and Slovenia use about 93 robots for every 10,000 manufacturing workers, the highest ratios in the EBRD region, and comparable to the level seen in Brazil, China and South Africa, the bank said.

    RELATED CONTENT

    RELATED VIDEOS

    Technology Robotics HR & Labor Management Apparel Industrial Manufacturing
    KEYWORDS Apparel Automation & Robotics Europe HR & Labor Management Industrial Manufacturing Technology
    • Related Articles

      Robots Are Coming for These Wall Street Jobs

      Collaborative Mobile Robots Are Coming To Your Warehouse

      Machines Are Coming for India’s Unwanted Jobs

    • Related Directories

      ProcureAbility

    Bloomberg

    Nissan in Talks to Make Cars by China’s Chery at UK Plant

    More from this author

    Subscribe to our Daily Newsletter!

    Timely, incisive articles delivered directly to your inbox.

    Featured Product

    Popular Stories

    • A TRUCK WITH ITS CONTAINER DOOR OPEN SITS UNDER A SIGN THAT READS INTERNATIONAL BORDER COMMERCIAL TRUCKS

      Importers Into Mexico Can No Longer Delay Complying With New Customs Declaration Law

      Data Management (Big Data/IoT/Blockchain)
    • An overhead view of a shipping port stacked with containers, with stylized lines forming a grid connecting ships and berths

      How Supply Chains Can Survive the Next Unexpected Demand Surge

      Data Management (Big Data/IoT/Blockchain)
    • 018_how_3pls_can_get_started_with_ai_v1-(540p).png

      Watch: How 3PLs Can Get Started With Automation

      Logistics Outsourcing
    • An employee in a warm suit crouches down to get boxes of food ready for shipping at a warehouse

      Packaging Optimization Is Boosting Cold Chain Growth

      Air Cargo
    • Three rows of yellow box trucks parked in front a white sheet metal building, with "DHL" written in red letter across the back

      DHL Inks $10B Last-Mile Delivery Deal with USPS

    Digital Edition

    2026 esg cover main scb q2 2026 cover

    SupplyChainBrain 2026 ESG Guide: ESG — The Supply Chain’s Biggest Secret

    VIEW THE LATEST ISSUE

    Case Studies

    • Recycled Tagging Fasteners: Small Changes Make a Big Impact

    • A GRAPHIC SHOWING MULTIPLE FORMS OF SHIPPING, WITH A HUMAN STANDING AT THE CENTER, TOUCHING A SYMBOLIC MAP OF THE WORLD

      Enhancing High-Value Electronics Shipment Security with Tive's Real-Time Tracking

    • A GRAPHIC OF INTERLACING HONEYCOMBED ELEMENTS REPRESENTING GLOBAL BUSINESS TRANSACTIONS

      Moving Robots Site-to-Site

    • JLL Finds Perfect Warehouse Location, Leading to $15M Grant for Startup

    • Robots Speed Fulfillment to Help Apparel Company Scale for Growth

    Visit Our Sponsors

    4flow Arkieva Blue Yonder
    Carton Cloud CoEnterprise Dassault
    Duravant E2Open General Logistics Systems
    Hy-Tek iGPS Korber
    Lyngsoe Procurability Quinyx
    SAP Sikick Systech
    S&P Global Mobility TADA TransImpact
    US Bank Werner Enterprises WSI
    • More From SCB
      • Featured Content
      • Video Library
      • Think Tank Blog
      • SupplyChainBrain Podcast
      • Whitepapers
      • On-Demand Webinars
      • Upcoming Webinars
    • Digital Offerings
      • Digital Issue
      • Subscribe
      • Manage Email Preferences
      • Newsletters
    • Resources
      • Events Calendar
      • 2026 Event Coverage
      • SCB's Great Supply Chain Partners
      • Supplier Directory
      • Case Study Showcase
      • Supply Chain Innovation Awards
      • 100 Great Partners Form
    • SCB Corporate
      • Advertise on SCB.COM
      • About Us
      • Privacy Policy
      • Contact Us
      • Data Sharing Opt-Out

    All content copyright ©2026 Keller International Publishing Corp All rights reserved. No reproduction, transmission or display is permitted without the written permissions of Keller International Publishing Corp

    Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing