I believe, and others probably believe also, that it is not wise to rely so much on China and their goverment.
But why? Seems to working just fine. I personally have no problem with the Chinese people. Their government could be better, but so could ours. If anything perhaps it is (albeit slowly) prompting the Chinese government to reform towards greater freedom (even as the US "reforms" towards less).
Who knows what they might think of doing in the future. It's not about the Chinese people, it's about their totalitarian govt.
I'm not sure if this issue has been resolved yet, but last I heard, Apple is still blocked out from China, when it comes to the appstore and iTunes.
What if a trade war happens in a few years? I just think that it's not wise to place all of your chips on one number.
I think increased automation is technically a good thing. But what about those 10s of thousands of workers? What becomes of them and their families? If more and more companies like Foxconn do this, which seems to be the trend, isn't this going to end up in mass unemployment, riots and calamity?
Fast food chains will be doing the same cause of $15/hr minimum wage.
Nah. Australia raised their minimum wage a big amount, and despite all the furor, it raised the price of a Big Mac about $0.45. The gloom-and-doomers are full of it. You can pay a lot of workers a lot of hours before you get to the cost of robotics for a burger job.
Actually robotics is a very cheap way to get something done these days. Especially if it is easily defined repetitive work. The big problem with fast food is getting consumers to accept food from a machine.
In any event the really problem here is that I've yet to meet a fast food work worth $15 an hour. Even if by chance someone with some brains is working in such a place they shouldn't be looking at Mc Donalds As a career. Flipping burgers is it and never has been a thing more than an entry level Job. We will create more problems if we start eliminating every entry level job opportunity in this country.
It's unfortunate that REALITY means that as technology improves, menial things like repetitive work can be done by non-humans (i.e. Robots) that don't require all the baggage that goes along with an employee...
BUT...
is is the individual's responsibility to adapt when their environment changes.
Is that clear enough?
I guess I don't consider that kind of advancement of technology unfortunate at all. In fact I hope for more of it. Removing humans from such work is an improvement for humanity. If people currently doing those tasks choose not to adapt they may, unfortunately, be negatively affected. But the unfortunate part is their unwillingness to adapt.
get back to us after you are laid off and lose your home.
You're correct that it probably isn't an easy task, however, they've got to start somewhere, and the sooner the better, imo.
Why? There's a presumption that the current arrangement is substantially flawed. I'm not sure it is.
I believe, and others probably believe also, that it is not wise to rely so much on China and their goverment.
China is itching to draw the USA into a war. Why is rally unknown at the moment but I can see them trying to grab most of the Asia Pacific region as their own.
I believe, and others probably believe also, that it is not wise to rely so much on China and their goverment.
But why? Seems to working just fine. I personally have no problem with the Chinese people. Their government could be better, but so could ours. If anything perhaps it is (albeit slowly) prompting the Chinese government to reform towards greater freedom (even as the US "reforms" towards less).
Who knows what they might think of doing in the future. It's not about the Chinese people, it's about their totalitarian govt.
I'm not sure if this issue has been resolved yet, but last I heard, Apple is still blocked out from China, when it comes to the appstore and iTunes.
What if a trade war happens in a few years? I just think that it's not wise to place all of your chips on one number.
It won't be a trade war and it won't be a Cold War. I fully expect China to attack the USA or a friend on the USA in the next two years. This will escalate quickly into a full nuclear war.
Fast food workers are the last people on the planet that should be getting $15 an hour. The whole idea just makes me angry.
i bet they celebrate when you walk into burger king.
Probably! At least locally we have a number of independent burger shacks that we can get food from. These are run by local owners and in every case sell a better product and have people working for them with a little gray matter between the ears. The same can be said for the local Mexican, Thai and other restaurants owned locally.
When Foxconn hired human workers, people say they hired child workers then blah blah. Now Foxconn uses Robot, people start saying more human workers will lose their current jobs in future.
I think Foxconn should only use Robot in manufacturing zone where there is toxic materials that are super harmful to humans instead of replacing human with robot in long term planning.
FWIW Foxconn's robotics partner was reported to be Google.
Per the WSJ several months ago:
"...the partnership makes sense as Foxconn, the world’s largest contract manufacturer of electronics devices, can provide Google the best testing ground for its new robotics technology. They said Google is expected to build a new robotic operating system for manufacturers, just like the Android operating system for mobile computing devices. A successful robotics operating system would further strengthen Google’s position in the technology industry.
“Foxconn needs Google’s help to step up automation at its factories as the company has the lowest sales per employee among the contract makers, given its large workforce,” said Wanli Wang, an analyst at CIMB Securities. “Using robots to replace human workers would be the next big thing in the technology industry."
A couple things in the basically off-topic $15/hour wage rants:
1) The fast food companies and many others were working on ordering kiosks long before the $15/hour wage proposal. They'll do anything to increase the bottom line and funnel more money to upper management and CEOs. The only way to get them to not do it and keep people gainfully employed is to boycott them, and that isn't going to happen -- at least not in a large enough capacity to make them remove the kiosks and hire people again.
2) What is it with everyone bitching about the kiosks, anyway? Everyone I know is always complaining the people behind the counter are morons who get their orders wrong, don't smile at them enough, and drop boogers in their food. The same people complaining about the kiosks knocking out jobs probably go through the automated check out lanes at the stores, too, and don't even think about the slow cashiers that talk to them too much who they just put out of work.
There were kiosks to order at a McD downtown here last year, and this year I've seen 5 more McD with them and minimum wage around here is $10.50 (Canadian). I expect that almost all McD will have those within 5 years. They'll keep one live cashier open, but that's it. I think you can also order though your cell phone at those stores (haven't checked that though).
The fast food chains are all doing this kind of crap already and just using "minimum wage" as a lame talking point.
FWIW Foxconn's robotics partner was reported to be Google.
Per the WSJ several months ago:
"...the partnership makes sense as Foxconn, the world’s largest contract manufacturer of electronics devices, can provide Google the best testing ground for its new robotics technology. They said Google is expected to build a new robotic operating system for manufacturers, just like the Android operating system for mobile computing devices. A successful robotics operating system would further strengthen Google’s position in the technology industry.
“Foxconn needs Google’s help to step up automation at its factories as the company has the lowest sales per employee among the contract makers, given its large workforce,” said Wanli Wang, an analyst at CIMB Securities. “Using robots to replace human workers would be the next big thing in the technology industry."
and...?
Gator had to interject a Google non sequitur again. Yep, nothing to see there hey Gator bud.... I sure have "not" got you pegged (sic).
You know what else those robots at Foxconn can build other than iPhones? A car - as in an Apple Car.
The only claim to fame Foxconn has is access to and utilisation of a large pool of cheap human labour. If you start using robots, China and Foxconn cease to have any particular relevance. If Apple want their cars made by robots, they should talk to Fiat, who might know a bit more than Foxconn about building cars with robots, since they have been doing that since the late 70's
If manufacturing becomes more automated and relies less on human workers, is there any reason to continue to do it in China?
One would still need to get a factory built. I'm sure the government red tape of planning a factory, dealing with various government bureaucratic agencies in getting it approved and built, not to mention the NIMBY's, are far, far less in China, than in some place like the US.
Fast food chains will be doing the same cause of $15/hr minimum wage.
Nah. Australia raised their minimum wage a big amount, and despite all the furor, it raised the price of a Big Mac about $0.45. The gloom-and-doomers are full of it. You can pay a lot of workers a lot of hours before you get to the cost of robotics for a burger job.
That's about a 15% increase. Restaurants are already automating the ordering process here. Applebee's is phasing in iPads at tables to place orders, so fewer wait staff are needed. With a $15 minimum wage that trend will just accelerate.
Nah. Australia raised their minimum wage a big amount, and despite all the furor, it raised the price of a Big Mac about $0.45. The gloom-and-doomers are full of it. You can pay a lot of workers a lot of hours before you get to the cost of robotics for a burger job.
That's about a 15% increase. Restaurants are already automating the ordering process here. Applebee's is phasing in iPads at tables to place orders, so fewer wait staff are needed. With a $15 minimum wage that trend will just accelerate.
I doubt one is any way related to another. Staffing costs related to this could easily be passed on and barely be felt. People just don't like the current "service" they get at the register and offering something better (and yes also cheaper, often both go together) is what drives this change. People have now mostly been trained to use apps to orders things. This is basically an extension of that fact.
The costs of most of the equipment to do so has also gone down a lot in the last few years, and will continue falling.
The fact they can offer much more targeted promotions with the kiosks and apps is just a bonus.
Comments
I'm not sure if this issue has been resolved yet, but last I heard, Apple is still blocked out from China, when it comes to the appstore and iTunes.
What if a trade war happens in a few years? I just think that it's not wise to place all of your chips on one number.
Probably! At least locally we have a number of independent burger shacks that we can get food from. These are run by local owners and in every case sell a better product and have people working for them with a little gray matter between the ears. The same can be said for the local Mexican, Thai and other restaurants owned locally.
and this year I've seen 5 more McD with them and minimum wage around here is $10.50 (Canadian).
I expect that almost all McD will have those within 5 years. They'll keep one live cashier open, but that's it.
I think you can also order though your cell phone at those stores (haven't checked that though).
The fast food chains are all doing this kind of crap already and just using "minimum wage" as a lame talking point.
Everybody saw that coming a few years ago.
Yep, nothing to see there hey Gator bud.... I sure have "not" got you pegged (sic).
Staffing costs related to this could easily be passed on and barely be felt.
People just don't like the current "service" they get at the register and offering something better (and yes also cheaper, often both go together) is what drives this change.
People have now mostly been trained to use apps to orders things. This is basically an extension of that fact.
The costs of most of the equipment to do so has also gone down a lot in the last few years, and will continue falling.
The fact they can offer much more targeted promotions with the kiosks and apps is just a bonus.