McBots on tap...Servants beware

[Don1]

Fmr. McDonald's USA CEO: $35K Robots Cheaper Than Hiring at $15 Per Hour
By Julia Limitone Published May 24, 2016 Business Leaders


As fast-food workers across the country vie for $15 per hour wages, many business owners have already begun to take humans out of the picture.


“I was at the National Restaurant Show yesterday and if you look at the robotic devices that are coming into the restaurant industry -- it’s cheaper to buy a $35,000 robotic arm than it is to hire an employee who’s inefficient making $15 an hour bagging French fries -- it’s nonsense and it’s very destructive and it’s inflationary and it’s going to cause a job loss across this country like you’re not going to believe,” said former McDonald’s (MCD) USA CEO Ed Rensi during an interview on the FOX Business Network’s Mornings with Maria.

[Islandman]

Somebody message this to Bernie and company please.

What is needed is more young graduates with the skills that make them trainable and adaptable to a rapidly changing work environment. What is not needed are more semi-literates being paid $15 to do repetitive work.

[Don1]

Somebody message this to Bernie and company please.

What is needed is more young graduates with the skills that make them trainable and adaptable to a rapidly changing work environment. What is not needed are more semi-literates being paid $15 to do repetitive work.

Absolutely..But mi nuh too concerned wid politicians....mostly wid fi wi peeps. We determine our destiny

To some extent low level servants will always be needed....so the groups that don't prepare for higher order work & entrepreneurship (by lack of interest in applied science & technology) will occupy those low skill niches

Since Black people are generally content (some are even overjoyed) for our group to be servants of some sort.... low level service work will continue to be the niche we dominate

Dawg nyam wi suppa

[Islandman]

Tru dat, but one would think that the political and financial elites would realise that there is a tipping point that will be eventually reached as the percentage of people with obsolete skill sets, along with an inability to develop new ones, continues to increase. It is in thier own interest to at least try to address some of these problems.

Firstly, the skills which are needed will be in short supply and that will restrict growth, then those who are left on the outside wont have the earning potential do do much more than dance, drink and watch TV. We not even talking yet about the potential for major social unrest.

An unpleasant end seems almost inevitable if nothing of significance is done to modify the course. But maybe the events which lead to these major disruptions are just a part of the cycles of history that we are destined to live through.

[Don1]

The political & financial elites are basically joined at the hip (with a few exceptions)

Their primary interest is not the welfare of middle, working & poor classes. It's in increasing their wealth & power. That to me is symptomatic of a society in decline

Their plan is achieved via the revolving door between big government & big industry...Monied people buying legislators and political office...Industry actually writing legislation thru lobbyists....

The result is wealth disparities surging & the middle class declining

Basically the entire system is slowly becoming totally rigged....and on the way to oligarchy status. Both parties are corrupt and partake in the con game. The difference in the party establishments is mainly rhetorical ...i.e. YAPPIN

Where it goes from this point is unknown

[Islandman]

When a company like FoxConn decides that Chinese factory workers are more costly than robots, you know resistance is futile.

Apple Inc. AAPL, -0.04% supplier Foxconn Technology Co. 2354, +0.69% has replaced 60,000 human workers with robots in a single factory, according to a report in the South China Morning Post, initially published over the weekend.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/fox...ina-2016-05-25

[Jawge]

Usually I would just remain silent and let the silly arguments continue. Does this CEO realize that if we don't go to 15 and hour, the US is heading for another housing crisis? Cost of living is up how can these low wage workers
meet rent? The landlords in turn cannot meet mortgage payments to banks.

The federal budget can't be bloated anymore with social programs. Why bloat the federal budget when employers can pay more to meet cost of living? Gov. Cuomo et al have vision.

Vision is a rare commodity these days.

[Don1]

Yes... I agree with you that it's best you remain silent

[Don1]

Yep...Robot run di cut

As more AI takes ahold of the labor market....Expect more Chiney to be dumped on backward places like JA that produce next to no tradable products.

Serving fat tourists wi seh!!

[Jawge]

"because those who know do not speak and those who speak do not know"

This is a powerful quote. "There is no virtue in ignorance".

[Don1]

Absolutely...Now go forth in ignorance...please

[Islandman]

With this argument , why stop at $15? Why not $30? Then we would get a housing boom!

Dwl!

[Don1]

Yes the argument is simplistic

[Rockman]

Islandman,perhaps people are guilty of merging two seperate issues as if they are inextricably related,my only concern is the minimum wage.
It is widely known that gold retains its value far better than paper money,a bar of gold has purchasing power today similar to what it had 50+ years ago,whilst paper money has lost treamendous value.
De money fenke fenke to begin with, let us see how it affected the middle class,a sect to which minimum wage issues do not affect their quality of life.
Fifty years ago,mommy and daddy could send their adorable child to college based solely on combined salary,today,the same couple likely would have to borrow money..

The minmum wage is better understood if we replace paper currency with gold.What we have is you started working for a ounce of gold and every year the boss asked you to work for even less gold.

Not really a concern,but curiously,isn't a drone a robot?

[Islandman]

Gold only outperforms paper money if it is kept under a bed and not invested in some form. Once the paper money is earning a return it will be worth far more than its gold equivalent over the long term.

Furthermore gold is just not flexible enough as a modern form of currency. Money in some form is much better especially in the virtual economy. Gold is one step above bartering.

I agree with you that college education has become unaffordable for most and this is a problem. Perhaps the system of education we now have needs to be totally reformed and certifications should take precedence over 4 year degrees for most industries. Too many college degrees are not worth the cost of attaining them today.

Yes a drone is basically a flying robot, sometime autonomous and sometimes operated remotely.