GETTY Mr Carney has said the growth of technology will result in a poor wage growth for those in work

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Mr Carney has said the growth of technology and expected automation of millions of blue and white collar jobs will result in a poor wage growth for those in work. He said “Marx and Engels may again become relevant” if technology destroys jobs, decreases wages and increase the amount of inequality, as a new elite of highly skilled workers and the owners of high-tech machines receive the rewards. Mr Carney told the Canada Growth Summit: “Workers cannot generally move seamlessly from one type of work to another in which they can be as productive. “The benefits, from a worker’s perspective, from the first industrial revolution, which began in the latter half of the 18th century, were not felt fully in productivity and wages until the latter half of the 19th century.”

He noted the stagnation in pay is known as “the Engels’ Pause”. The Governor, who is due to step down next year, added: “If you substitute platforms for textile mills, machine learning for steam engines, Twitter for the telegraph, you have exactly the same dynamics as existed 150 years ago - when Karl Marx was scribbling the Communist Manifesto.” Productivity increased 150 years ago following the industrial revolution and new technology boosted manufacturing. But average wages failed to increase for decades as machines meant the jobs created were low-skilled.

Mr Carney said recent years of weak wage growth since the financial crisis could indicate this 19th century experience is being repeated now. The Governor added there are also signs of “hollowing out” in the job market as mid-level workers find computers able to complete specific tasks. He said: “There is a disconnect in expectations. “In surveys, over 90 per cent of citizens don’t think their jobs will be affected by automation, but a similar percentage of CEOs think the opposite, in the number of jobs which will be materially affected.”

GETTY Mark Carney noted the stagnation in pay is known as “the Engels’ Pause”

Law firms, for example, are now starting to use artificial intelligence to look at documents and analyse data, something which was traditionally done by junior lawyers. Banks are also using large volumes of data on customer queries and complaints and putting them into a machine. The data can be used for the machines to learn common questions that client asks, allowing the computers to answer questions directly, removing the need to employ customer service staff. Jobs such as a taxi or lorry drivers could also be scrapped, as self-driving technology continues to improve.

GETTY Productivity increased 150 years ago following the industrial revolution