The Impact of Industry 4.0 on Jobs Creation within the Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises and Family Businesses in Slovakia

Industry 4.0 has been creating new jobs for several years, and people are already being employed in work positions that did not exist ten years ago. Due to the speed and complexity of the changes brought about by the Fourth Industrial Revolution, it will be necessary to respond adequately and flexibly to this challenge. This research paper is devoted to the issue of Industry 4.0 outbreak into industrial enterprises, while the issue of job structure will become an increasingly urgent one. The main objective of this problem-oriented quantitative type of research is based on the analysis of the state and course of Industry 4.0 implementation process to estimate the impact of Industry 4.0 concept implementation on job creation in small and medium-sized enterprises and family businesses in Slovak Republic. A questionnaire survey in small and medium-sized enterprises in Slovak Republic was chosen as the fundamental research method. The results have shown that new technologies will increasingly displace physical labor in particular, and emerging jobs will put ever-increasing demands on human intellect. The conclusions from our findings can be the basis for the creation of educational programs not only within the workplace but also in the educational system in Slovak Republic.