Posted on 07/29/2013 11:03:49 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
If Seattle fast workers demanding a big raise in the minimum wage get their way, they'll soon be replaced by robots says KIRO Radio's John Curley, who points to growing automation as a warning to those who want $15 an hour or more to flip burgers.
A group of local fast food workers recently staged a one-day walkout and are calling on the Seattle City Council to increase the minimum wage from $9.19 per hour - the highest in the country - to $15 an hour.
"We're asking for $15 because in order to support one person in a one bedroom apartment you need to make $14.88. We don't make anywhere near that and we're all on food stamps," 23-year-old Amanda Larson told KIRO Radio's Linda Thomas recently as she worked the counter at a Seattle Arby's.
But restaurant owners argue they simply can't afford it. With technology continuing to allow restaurants around the world to replace people with robots and computers, Curley says look no farther than several examples in Japan and Europe as a sign of what's to come if the Seattle workers get their way.
A noted Japanese sushi-chain has robots making food while customers order on a touch screen. A conveyer belt delivers their food and a computer tracks customer purchases and automates their bill payment at the end.
"There are no managers in this restaurant," Curley says. "The managers are all in a centrally located place that are just simply watching video screens. So they've been able to cut out almost all the help."
Several years ago, McDonald's installed thousands of touch-screen kiosks at stores across Europe, replacing cashiers entirely. The company has reportedly also tried out automated burger flippers to further cut back on employees.
It's not far fetched. A Chinese restaurateur has developed a robotic chef now found in a number of noodle bars, further eliminating the need for humans. With the robot chefs costing just $1,500, they're far cheaper than employees and don't demand raises or breaks.
Curley says the workers here demanding higher wages for a job that should be entry-level should think twice before raising too much of a fuss - before they find themselves completely obsolete.
"The saddest thing for this story, if you follow it, is robots will replace human beings in these McDonald's and fast food restaurants and low skill workers will have really no place to go."
(VIDEO-AT-LINK)
correct. A minimum wage doesn't help imho
Because nothing says freedom more than being a government slave for some odd number of years.
“Give me a number 5 ... for a robocop.”
If these nutters got their way, we could see these places on every corner, just one person managing a 7-eleven sized store with pizza, burger, chicken and nacho machines. THAT person will likely be paid pretty good.
Gotta keep the ingredients stocked after all.
the laziness can be worked out, but that will take decades of work. It's like the Roman republic. Initially everyone was working hard for the community as a whole then the politicians learnt about giving free bread and circuses to get votes....
What do we do?
First, start unwinding the policies and laws that have driven up the cost of living. The issue is at least partly the zoning laws that allow rich liberals to continue living in their insulated neighborhoods while keeping the poor, poor so they vote demonratic
Second, some of these people may need to move to other locations where the cost of living is lower. This would lower the cost of living in large cities by reducing the pressure on the housing supply. It would also help to break up the ghetto mentality that re-enforces cycles of low income behavior
Third, find a democrat and punch their lights outs. This is their fault. Just because it feels so good
Four, part of the first point would allow some manufacturing jobs to to return. Incentives could be given to companies to build in the US. This would not be an immediate help and would take time
Fifth; break the unions. At least brake the ones that rather than working to better the company and setting realistic wage and working goals insist upon an overtly confrontational us versus them approach. But remove all union pension benefits and place them in a single Federal Agency where they cannot be siphoned off for mob activities or democratic campaign contributions
Just my thoughts
Life was not meant to free of obstacles or challenges but those are not impenetrable barriers.
How to run a crew, how to schedule diverse personalities, how to handle the cash, and how to budget, order, and plan with an aim of making the joint successful and you gain skills that ANYONE can sell.
These folks don't have to be Mensa members, nor do they have to be in the 100+ range of IQ. They first have to have gained these skills, and they have to be willing to show up every workday ready to do the work. Because this is work that needs to be done, whether it's for a fast food joint, or running a phone store, or sell tires, or any of a hundred other jobs that need to get done every single day. And these jobs DO pay more than minimum wage.
Slavery. It is was welfare was designed to do, prepare and create the new slave class. A new slave class with the mentality and capability to do only the meanest and basest of society's chores, existing at the largess of the upper classes of society. A large number of science fiction novels over the last century have explored this historical destination.
Well, at least a robot chef won’t get all disgruntled and spit on your food...
“What do we do with the unemployed then?” Nothing really. With all their free time, they can spend most of it at the local library where there is unlimited free access to all the world's classic books. We can have a huge permanent, but spectacularly well-read unemployed class! We can have book clubs with regular discussion sessions everywhere.
Others can jog and bike and swim regularly. Triathlons will be available to everyone with their new fitness. Triathlons will even have age divisions so everyone can have a meaningful chance of competing for honors.
The people will be so happy and contented. I so look forward to that day soon.
Oldplayer
You end up supporting them one way or another...
Loved that book, got a tattered 20yr old copy of it. Also love the concept, but I would include the police and firefighters that also put their lives on the line.
Hey fast food workers at $15 an hour, if you still have a job, you will be absolutely required to get our orders RIGHT.
Why use Robots when you can hire kids and old people? They will work for $3 an hour and food. Maybe do a kick back system. Let them work three hour shifts—Part Time “Training wages” People want to work and will if given a chance. No need to pay $15 dollar wage to some greedy minority who thinks he’s worth it for breating air. Hire illegals—they will work and live in a room with 6 others to make it work.
Amazon has a Seattle grocery warehouse where a fleet of robots actually pull multi-item orders from the shelves and deliver them to the proper loading dock.
Next job in danger?
Warehouse-to-warehouse long haul truckers.
I have a long-standing ongoing argument with a friend about the “living wage”. She just refuses to see that when a person’s minimum pay is set at some level, it prices them out of the market. She just believes (BELIEVES!!!) that the only reason that wages are set at the current level is because the corporations won’t raise them.
Of course, she’s a pastor and her wage is set by TPTB in her denomination rather than the amount of money brought into her congregation.
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