Automation and The American Dream
I had three recent experiences with automation and AI systems and I’m concerned about corporate greed and The American Dream.
Remember the American Dream, you can pick yourself up from nothing and make it in America?! The ladder is the key, climbing it is the challenge, but the ladder needs to be there.
The teller in my bank asked me to come into the bank whenever possible instead of using the automated systems like atms so that more tellers are not laid off. I heard a story on NPR about how Amazon employees are being injured at an alarming rate trying to keep up with robots in the fulfillment centers . OSHA isn’t doing anything about it because they don’t want to antagonize Amazon and possibly cause the community to lose the jobs. I was in CVS and it was very busy. I was there to get a few cold remedies. I hesitated to go to the auto checkout because the systems are often slow and ask you stupid questions. The ones at CVS also talk too loud, in an nasty lecturing voice that makes me feel like I’m in trouble with the teacher. Also, using the auto check out directly impacts the livelihoods of CVS employees. In fact I mentioned this to the woman overseeing the 5 or 6 machines and I was told that yes in fact CVS are cutting hours for their employees (at holiday season with business booming.)
Are my observations indicative of corporate initiative or greed? The answer is both. Is it the end of the American Dream? People are trying to work their way up, but corporations complain that the $15 per hour minimum wage is driving companies to automation.
To me the problem is the lack of good jobs at good wages which has resulted in people relying on low wage jobs to make a living.
There are few good jobs for these people trying to climb the economic ladder. This is why they need 15$ per hour because it’s their only option to put food on the table and a roof over their heads.
Increasing the minimum wage will hurt the small businesses owned and operated by the middle class, not the big corporations. The small businesses that will be most affected won’t have the option of automation due to the cost to acquire the technology.
Does a rising tide raise all ships? Do rising stock market prices benefit everyone including pension funds and union employees?
That is partly true but there is very unequal distribution of the benefits if and when cutting employees hours ( lower labor costs), is part of the reason stock prices are rising.
People with less than full time jobs have no pensions and no investments, not even insurance unless government provided, they are mostly surviving paycheck to paycheck and many of them are on public assistance for food or shelter.
Taxpayers are subsidizing the corporations benefiting from reduced labor costs. They may be benefiting from the stock market rising, but they are also paying more and more taxes to support everyone below them on the economic ladder.
This is not a red blue issue, the Democrats are just as much in bed with big business as the Republicans. The problem is that neither side has supported policies to strengthen the middle class. Instead they have pursued geo political goals, which big businesses have benefited from increasing profitability by outsourcing jobs to low wage countries and incentivizing investment in labor eliminating AI and robotics.
There are other related issues that lead us to this point. No immigration policy for 40 years until the union workforce was almost eliminated by offshore production and exploited immigrants working for reduced wages and no benefits.
I’m not going to blame my country or capitalism. America is a strongly capitalistic society we are a meritocracy in a world of rigid social orders. Thats why so many millions of people from around the world made their way here looking for opportunity and a better life, and still do.
President Calvin Coolidge said “the business of the American people is business”. (Or something to that effect). In this context we should understand that America IS all about business and the decisions and laws and trade deals negotiated by politicians reflect big business, (in other words big campaign donors) interests.
We need an organized coalition of working people and middle class to have a seat at the table deciding government policy. (Used to be called The Democratic Party). After all these people represent the vast majority of voters.
The American Dream is not dead it’s hiding in skilled labor jobs. Forget your lofty college plans and become skilled tradesmen and women. It costs money and time to get trained but not $100,000 and there are solid good paying jobs out there that are not easily automated.
You will be in demand building the automated factories and offices and malls of the future. You can own your own business or join a union. You will be needed and you have a vote, use it!
Get your hands dirty, save $100,000 of college tuition and live without worrying about being outsourced or replaced with a drone or a computer. The $15 minimum wage won’t matter anymore.
Sent from my iPhone