The Future and Automation
Automation is everywhere, from washing machines in the comfort of our own homes to automatic assembly lines in factories. The world as we know is becoming more and more advanced each day, but at what cost? Before we dive into that, we must ask the first question, what is automation? Automation can be described as the creation and application of technologies to produce and deliver goods and services with minimal human intervention according to an article from techopedia. I would first like to put an emphasis on that last part which is “with minimal human intervention.” From that we can already see that a major part of automation is to make less work for humans.
Before the 2020 elections, there was a democratic candidate named Andrew Yang. During this time, I really enjoyed listening to his debates and keeping up with his campaign as I agreed with a lot of his points. One of the main problems he addressed was automation and how it is responsible for job losses especially in factories. He goes on to point out how 88 percent of factory job losses from 2000 to 2010 were caused by automation. In one of Andrew Yang’s articles to the New York Times, he explains that automation doesn’t just affect millions of factory workers and truck drivers. Bookkeepers, journalist, retail and food service workers, office clerks, call center employees and teachers also face the threat of being replaced by machines. This is a scary idea to grasp because as time passes technology is only going to improve which will pave the way for more job losses worldwide. Growing up, we’ve seen automation in sci-fi movies but now it is becoming a reality. With the rise of driverless cars, truck drivers, taxis, uber, and lyft may all become obsolete soon. Another example is Amazon’s Prime Air. This is an Amazon service that will deliver packages up to five pounds in 30 minutes or less using small drones. Though this doesn’t seem like a big deal now, with improvements in tech this could easily transition into a drone that could deliver larger weight and quantities of products, causing delivery trucks and drivers to lose jobs as well.
Now we are going to shift gears and talk about the benefits of automation. Automation is great in that it allows a higher output and increased productivity in businesses. On top of these two, automation also allows for more efficient use of materials, better product quality, and improved safety. Since the work environment is run by machines, companies don’t have to worry about the human error factor, allowing for a better workflow since humans are more prone to error compared to machines. With that, workers will be less likely to work overtime and will allow for a shorter work week. Work safety is also important, and with automation it is less likely for someone to hurt themselves or accidents to happen in the field.
Now that we have addressed both sides to automation, we can see that there are both pros and cons to the story. On one hand, we can see a huge boost in production as well as a more efficient workflow, and on the other hand we can see the loss of jobs for hundreds of thousands of people. This is a difficult problem to address and there are certainly people out there that believe that this isn’t real, but it very much is. For me personally, I believe that there should be certain regulations put out there to set a limit to what can be automated so that there can still be possible job opportunities. I also agree with Andrew Yang’s solution to job losses by automation, and that is the idea of universal basic income. This allows a monthly stipend of $1,000 dollars that is estimated to create 4.5 million jobs by channeling and advocating consumer spending power back into the economy.
Works Cited
“Advantages and Disadvantages of Automation.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., https://www.britannica.com/technology/automation/Advantages-and-disadvantages-of-automation.
Yang, Andrew. “Andrew Yang: Yes, Robots Are Stealing Your Job.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 14 Nov. 2019, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/14/opinion/andrew-yang-jobs.html.
“Automation Is a Real Threat. How Can We Slow down the March of the Cyborgs?” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 8 Aug. 2017, https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/aug/08/humans-v-robots-defending-jobs.
Techopedia. “What Is Automation? — Definition from Techopedia.” Techopedia.com, Techopedia, 8 June 2021, https://www.techopedia.com/definition/32099/automation.
