TABLE OF CONTENTS A great many changes that take place at work are driven by developments in technology. If we go back in history, the most fundamental change in working life in Britain came about as a result of the invention of machines such as the spinning jenny and the steam engine in the second half of the eighteenth century. Before this Industrial Revolution, most people worked on the land or in cottage industries in 1750, only about 20% of England's population lived in towns. After this date there was a vast increase in the number of people toiling in factories and coalfields and by 1850 over 50% lived in towns.
Now we seem to be coming full circle, as many more of the population are working from home or in small businesses. Technology is a major factor in the change. The post-industrial revolution is with us: only about 20% of workers in Britain are employed by manufacturing companies, and most coal mines have been closed.
But who can say whether this will be the picture in 20 or 30 years' time?
Apart from the computer, what inventions in the 20th and 21st centuries have changed, or are in the process of changing, the way people work? Jot down two or three.
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You might have mentioned:
various forms of transport, such as cars, aeroplanes and high-speed trains;
space technology;
modern telecommunications, including permanent and mobile phones, and satellite links;
the Internet;
automation and industrial...
