Many Fear Automation Will Wipe Out Jobs. But Automating Buildings Will Be a Jobs Creator

Amazon’s launch of its “Go” store — essentially a grocery with no cashiers — has fueled a debate about how automation will destroy jobs.

There are 3.4 million workers with some variant of the title “cashier” in America, according to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, making it one of the most common jobs in the country. But Amazon’s store eliminates this role. And soon, automated taxis, stores and restaurants could wipe out many millions of similar jobs across the service sector.

Experts are increasingly grappling with what technology, automation and artificial intelligence mean for the average worker. But it’s not all bad news.

For example, a recent Planet Money podcast noted that improvements in navigation and tracking technology enabled UPS to increase the number of packages that a driver can deliver in a day. Due to these improvements, the total compensation for a UPS driver has doubled over the past 20 years.

Read more (Green Tech Media)