American Public Media’s ‘Marketplace’ has produced a 5-part audio series entitled ‘Robots Ate My Job.’

The issue of jobs being displaced by automation is very topical. Many reputable sources are providing research or opinion: NY Times, Harvard Business Review, Metra Martech, and the International Federation of Robotics to name a few.

The recent acquisition of Kiva Systems by Amazon raises the fear that Kiva robots will displace thousands of Amazon warehouse workers.

In China, Foxconn plans to deploy 1 million robots in the next 3 years – a feat that will displace 500,000 workers. They claim they will try to move the displaced workers up the salary scale.

Is it true that jobs will be lost or just rearranged when robots are installed? Is it also true that more robots mean fewer jobs lost to offshore sources? Read more

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