A RECENT RESEARCH STUDY REVEALS THAT THE HEALTH OF
our nation’s workers may be adversely affected by the fear of losing their
jobs to automation.
The study, conducted by researchers at Ball State University and
Villanova University, shows that even a 10-percent increase in the risk
of automation leads to declines in workers’ general, physical, and mental
health. The research follows widely reported estimates that machines will
eventually replace nearly half the jobs currently performed by humans.
Workers understandably fear they will lose their livelihoods and be unable
to care for their families.
Of course, jobs will change as technologies evolve.
This is nothing new. There are very few calls today for
blacksmiths or elevator operators. Workers in those
jobs had to adapt to changing technologies, with the
result that many transferred their skills to other fields.
Some jobs will also change in the supply chain.
Most positions in the future will likely require greater
skills than the entry-level minimum-wage jobs that are
common in warehouses. However, I believe the fear of
widespread job loss in the supply chain is unfounded.
One reason for the rapid growth of automation
in our industry is that there simply are not enough
people available to do the work. With national unemployment at only 3. 8 percent in May (the lowest rate
since the Great Recession), we do not have the labor
needed to meet the demands of industry growth. The limited labor pool
makes it especially hard to find good workers. Machines help to make up
this difference. It’s not so much a case of machines replacing workers as a
case of machines replacing people who simply are not there.
Beyond the need to fill labor gaps, most of the automated systems now
being introduced in distribution operations are designed to make existing
workers more productive and efficient. Instead of replacing workers, these
machines simply make their jobs easier.
Today’s robots and automated vehicles ferry products to workers,
eliminating the need for them to roam the aisles in search of items, which
results in less fatigue. They also pick products for workers, reducing tasks
that involve repetitive reaching and twisting—a source of many job-relat-ed injuries.
In the past, manual warehouses required workers to lift and move
hundreds of heavy boxes each shift. Now, machines do the heavy lifting,
allowing workers to concentrate on more productive tasks.
So, while some fear the future, I believe there will be plenty of work to
go around. Say it with me: Machines are our friends, machines are our
friends.
bigpicture
Editorial Director
Say it with me: Machines are our friends
David Maloney
Editorial Director
dmaloney@dcvelocity.com
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