@ragingloli I agree with your point about whether the change is adding value to the customer. Some technology does add some subtracts. I guess we are in a learning curve with this sort of thing. It’s up to the public and labor to push back, but I don’t think it can be a simple rejection of not wanting to take away jobs from people.
Take curbside pick-up at stores. I wonder if that saves on payroll for the stores? I don’t see how. They have to have an employee shopping for the goods in lieu of a customer.
Self-driving trucks still makes me nervous. Supposedly, they are already on highways where I live. Are truck drivers harder to find now? I don’t know.
I am open to the discussion of UBI, but I think it will take a big overhaul, as you state, actually I usually say it will take a cultural shift, to really make it all work. In the US I see one thing changing, but not simultaneously with another, and so then it will fail and become even more political, rather than working together to tweak it.
I think the movement should be towards a shorter work week, reasonable pay (meaning higher pay at lower levels and lower pay at the higher levels, but still some gradation) and I have to throw in a much better more socialized health system or at least a health system with regulatory caps on pricing. If we add a UBI, it needs to be low enough not to discourage young people from working, because I think it is important for many reasons.
I do think the US need to promote a culture of sharing skills. Where I live the community provides the buildings and we provide for each other classes for “free.” This concept could be done around the country. We are productive even when we are not “working” and we can do it because we have enough time and money without working.
One of the big problems in the US is Socialism and Capitalism are pitted against each other in politics, rather than understanding some of the most socialized countries are also considered some of the most capitalistic countries, like Sweden.