Numerous people continue to work from home and practice social distancing as we settle into 2021. Although some industries have made strides towards business as usual, it is important to keep in mind how the global health crisis has impacted and will continue to influence professional industries.
In engineering the ability to work from home is dependent on the facet of engineering in question. Luckily, engineering is a necessary industry. Engineers create a variety of structures and products to maintain and progress our daily life. “With more Baby Boomers leaving the job market than Millennials and Gen Zs entering these jobs, this makes engineering jobs in high demand.” Says Nichols from Austin Nichols Technical Search.
Prior to the pandemic the The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projected employment growth for the engineering field to nearly 140,000 new jobs over the 2016–26 decade. On account of the demand of medical technology, artificial intelligence, and virtual reality. With that in mind it is unlikely the pandemic will slow the growth of the industry.
This is not to say that Covid-19 will have no effect on the engineering industry. The financial impact of the pandemic will influence the future of all industries, engineering included. A video featuring Erica Groshen from Cornell University’s Cornell Chronicle, referenced the below changes as possible modifications across the board professionally.
New terms and conditions at work
More sick leave
Operative procedures that allow more employees to work from home
More domestic manufacturing
More remote connectivity
Further automation, which leads to artificial intelligence
While the day to day look and feel of the engineering field may shift to suit a post pandemic world it is clear that the engineering job market is alive and well. If you are considering which engineering field to pursue you may want to research a career in artificial intelligence, as Groshen predicted the need for that industry will only continue to grow.