4차 산업혁명을 둘러싼 쟁점들 - ‘노동사회학적 관점’에서 -

The fourth Industrial Revolution sparked by the Davos Forum and the game between Alphgo and Lee Se-dol in early 2016 led a lot of controversy, both academically and politically. This article attempted to find the theory and policy agenda by examining the issues surrounding the fourth Industrial Revolution from the labor-sociological perspective, that is, focusing on the relationship between technology and labor. First of all, the theoretical agenda seems to reignite the capitalism debate. This is because labor problems caused by capitalistic contradictions such as labor control, unstable labor and polarization, low-skilled labor, and alienation of labor are present also in the digital age. Therefore, instead of the fourth industrial revolution or shared economy, it should be characterized by “digital capitalism” and develop a new critical theory of capitalism. Next, we emphasize that the policy agenda should focus on designing a new ‘labor society’. Many jobs are disappearing due to the automation and digitization of the fourth industrial revolution, but there are many new jobs as well, and labor is still an important factor in production. In this sense establishing the direction of social policy on the premise of a crisis of the labor society or a post-labor society in which jobs are disappearing seems unlikely to be an alternative. Overall, the impact of technology on labor is two-sided. As a result, our policy capabilities and interventions are becoming more important.