The Fourth Industrial Revolution and the disruptive technologies: implications in work relations

Abstract

This research covers an analysis of the essential aspects involving the Fourth Industrial Revolution, disruptive technologies and their consequences on work relations. Using literature reviews, analysing cases of companies that failed and others that remodeled themselves to survive the yearnings of the technological age, it was possible to obtain important results. The research was conducted in three parts: 1. historical contextualization guiding the reader on the main aspects and peculiarities of the Fourth Industrial Revolution; 2. definition, application and some examples of disruptive technologies; 3. confirmation of the impact of these technologies on work relations. The methods used were: hermeneutics, privileging theoretical studies and analysis of documents and texts and the deductive method, starting from existing laws and theories for the development of a logical reasoning to explain the central problem. Negative impacts of mass unemployment due to the replacement of human labor by highly technological machines cannot be stimated. These machines are part of what has been called disruptive technology, i.e., a product or innovative servant destabilizes competition, overcoming it in such a way that it promotes the rupture of existing models, ruining them. Professionals will be called to fill new jobs, with skills and competencies for Industry 4.0, whose interaction between man and machine will be essential. Use of big data in quality control, robots, fully automated vehicles, 3D printers in production lines, among other activities are examples of work demands.