Machines are taking our jobs

As technology outgrows us at an alarming rate, we're seeing more and more manual jobs being taken over by machines. From automobile production lines, to banks, to the supermarket checkouts, to name just a few.

What will happen once we run out of alternative forms of employment for people? How will the economy be propped up if people are out of work and can't put any money back into the system?

One theory is that a universal income would mean people had money to spend but what does the forum think might happen?

As technology outgrows us at an alarming rate, we're seeing more and more manual jobs being taken over by machines. From automobile production lines, to banks, to the supermarket checkouts, to name just a few.

 

What will happen once we run out of alternative forms of employment for people? How will the economy be propped up if people are out of work and can't put any money back into the system?

 

One theory is that a universal income would mean people had money to spend but what does the forum think might happen?

I think John Connor will come from the future past and destroy skynet so we can all go back to communicating via letters sent by donkey.

As technology outgrows us at an alarming rate, we're seeing more and more manual jobs being taken over by machines. From automobile production lines, to banks, to the supermarket checkouts, to name just a few.

 

What will happen once we run out of alternative forms of employment for people? How will the economy be propped up if people are out of work and can't put any money back into the system?

 

One theory is that a universal income would mean people had money to spend but what does the forum think might happen?

I read the article on the BBC at well - its like the writer had fallen asleep for the last 15 years. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-38600270

No mention of IT jobs and call centre work already being shipped out, pretty poor really.

In answer to the OP, we'll adapt ot if the country really hits the buffers we'll start a war with someone and take what theyve got. Obviously we're talking decades from now but considering all the industries we've let slide we still make weapons and we've still got a well trained army!

Im not sure - a universal income will result in a lot (or "more", I add somewhat provocatively) people choosing to sit on their arse all day and watch Jeremy Kyle and repeats of Bargain Hunt. There will be more choosing that than the other more utopian vision of people using this freedom for charitable works or self education.

Somebody has to make the machines though....!

Somebody has to make the machines though....!

This.

Automation (specifically software) is my line of work, of all sorts of processes. There's gallons of work for engineers at the minute.

What will happen is exactly what has always happened.

As old manual jobs are destroyed, new jobs will emerge. These jobs will be easier and will pay better.

200 years ago most of us would be lucky to live in a single room hovel, owning one pair of basic clothes, receiving no education, having nothing but the most basic possessions and working ourselves into an early grave to maybe get enough food to survive.

How many times must the Luddites be proven wrong before they learn?

This has been a topic of conversation and argument for probably since mankind began to use tools.

The Luddites expressed their displeasure most famously, when cropping machines took away their highly skilled and well paid work.

More recently highly skilled work such as draughtsmanship was made redundant by machines that can do the job (to a lesser standard, and with less flair, than a proper draughtsman though)

We used to discuss this subject at school, over 60 years ago.

The general idea then was that automation would be a general benefit to everyone, as it has been.

But it was also thought that it would lead to greater leisure time, and fairer distribution of work and wealth, this has not come about.

We now have millions of totally unskilled, and virtually unemployable people, who are being left by the wayside.

They are the empty vessels into which these new 'populist' extremists are pouring their unwelcome trash.

As Mao Tse Dong reportedly said, 'give me a blank sheet of paper and I can write as I choose'

I think John Connor will come from the future past and destroy skynet so we can all go back to communicating via letters sent by donkey.

When Sky bought the easynet client base and infrastructure, they missed a trick, big-time.

No mention of IT jobs and call centre work already being shipped out, pretty poor really.

Call centre work is returning at an ever increasing rate.

It's like no-one thought that making an already irate customer speak to someone with a ropey grasp of English is just going to make them even more angry.

Social media is increasingly becoming a point of contact too, that likewise needs to be staffed by native speakers because if anything the public are even worse on social media than over the phone.

It work has/is going offshore, although people are expecting quite abit to come back when it becomes apparent the offshore people don't have a clue what they're doing.

I read the article on the BBC at well - its like the writer had fallen asleep for the last 15 years. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-38600270

 

No mention of IT jobs and call centre work already being shipped out, pretty poor really.

 

In answer to the OP, we'll adapt ot if the country really hits the buffers we'll start a war with someone and take what theyve got. Obviously we're talking decades from now but considering all the industries we've let slide we still make weapons and we've still got a well trained army!

 

Im not sure - a universal income will result in a lot (or "more", I add somewhat provocatively) people choosing to sit on their arse all day and watch Jeremy Kyle and repeats of Bargain Hunt. There will be more choosing that than the other more utopian vision of people using this freedom for charitable works or self education.

I've not read that article on the BBC.

The trouble with the services industry is that people are just sat on their backsides making phone calls all day or staring at a screen. There's no creativity or manual tasks that involve breaking any kind of a sweat. This leads to bad health because, like myself, not everyone wants to go to the gym and exercise in front of others. Plus, it can be expensive, £30 a month (ish)....unless you go to one of those cheaper pure gym places and queue for ages because they're always packed.

One good thing about a universal income is these people, of which you mention, are at least going to spend their money. They might not want to work but apparantly they love a big TV, Sky Sports and a larger or 2!

---------- Post added 01-02-2017 at 13:54 ----------

Somebody has to make the machines though....!

True, but it's certainly not the same people that the machines are replacing. There's a massive education gap between an engineer and a checkout person.

---------- Post added 01-02-2017 at 13:59 ----------

What will happen is exactly what has always happened.

As old manual jobs are destroyed, new jobs will emerge. These jobs will be easier and will pay better.

 

200 years ago most of us would be lucky to live in a single room hovel, owning one pair of basic clothes, receiving no education, having nothing but the most basic possessions and working ourselves into an early grave to maybe get enough food to survive.

How many times must the Luddites be proven wrong before they learn?

The Luddites are all dead.

Anyway, the way that the machinery was introduced broke employment laws and was fraudulent. Who can blame them for revolting.

Here we are having a conversation about the future and you bring up the 1800's haha!

It all sound a bit ' eighth day' to me!

I've not read that article on the BBC.

 

The trouble with the services industry is that people are just sat on their backsides making phone calls all day or staring at a screen. There's no creativity or manual tasks that involve breaking any kind of a sweat. This leads to bad health because, like myself, not everyone wants to go to the gym and exercise in front of others. Plus, it can be expensive, £30 a month (ish)....unless you go to one of those cheaper pure gym places and queue for ages because they're always packed.

 

One good thing about a universal income is these people, of which you mention, are at least going to spend their money. They might not want to work but apparantly they love a big TV, Sky Sports and a larger or 2!

 

---------- Post added 01-02-2017 at 13:54 ----------

 

 

True, but it's certainly not the same people that the machines are replacing. There's a massive education gap between an engineer and a checkout person.

 

---------- Post added 01-02-2017 at 13:59 ----------

 

 

The Luddites are all dead.

 

Anyway, the way that the machinery was introduced broke employment laws and was fraudulent. Who can blame them for revolting.

 

Here we are having a conversation about the future and you bring up the 1800's haha!

I find myself disagreeing with most of that I'm afraid - the creative industries are one of the things this country does well. I dont use a gym either - Im a lardy who doesnt like exercise in front of people at a gym so I do it at home - cheaper too (weights coming off bit by bit )