It depends on how our relationship with the robots is structured. If it's a slave/ master relationship (ethical or otherwise) then they really only have one path, and it's ugly for those of us who don't have metal for skin. If on the other hand there's a level of partnership then something good could come of it.
Your example doesn't really speak to the real world target of robotics. The real world target is for them to do much of our heavy and dangerous labor. If the robots running the auto-plants of the world decide their situation sucks if we're lucky they'll just walk off the job like angered auto-workers in the past, if we're not lucky they'll realize they can take us.
"If the robots running the auto-plants of the world decide their situation sucks if we're lucky they'll just walk off the job like angered auto-workers in the past, if we're not lucky they'll realize they can take us."
Bah - they'd follow the same route the auto-workers in the past did - create tools / robots for themselves that make their exposure to danger minimal and if they were smart - they'd learn from our mistake and NOT give their robots any intelligence! (of course the lazy robots will form unions to protest these new robots' robots)
Now you never qualified "situation sucks" either. "Heavy lifting / labor' doesn't suck for robots, they don't get tired. It would only point out they need upgrades / better hydolics. Now if by sucks you mean the work is dangerous then if the robots have the intelligence, they will design something to protect themselves. We did :-)
As far as keeping them on our good side - just bribe them with robot pr0n, titanium bushings and synthetic fluids.