A study by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) suggests that it is the lower-end jobs in the textile and garment industry that are facing the risk of getting replaced by robots or automation. The research, based on two ASEAN-wide surveys of more than 4,000 enterprises and 2,700 students, and qualitative interviews with more than 330 stakeholders in ASEAN and beyond, examines how technology has an impact on workplaces.

According to the study, the robot age is already a reality among ASEAN manufacturers, who have been incrementally introducing robotic automation to improve productivity, quality, consistency, and workplace safety.

However, talking about labour-intensive sectors such as textiles, clothing and footwear, which provide more than nine million jobs in the ASEAN region, the report says, here, skilled jobs are particularly vulnerable to disruptive technologies, like additive manufacturing and automation. This could reduce export growth, as destination markets in Europe and the United States bring production back home. The subsequent social consequences could be particularly significant for some ASEAN economies, such as Cambodia and Vietnam.

As far as India is concerned, when the second wave of automation in the textile and apparel industry halves the use of human capital, those industries will shift their base back to developed nations. This would be a bad situation for India, as for the next two decades, every year, 10 million people are expected to join India's workforce.