Don’t let job automation cause inequality | Fix it with 3 Amazing UBI approaches!

As we delve into the transformative era of job automation, it’s imperative to recognize its potential to revolutionize productivity and efficiency across industries.

However, the shadow of rising inequality looms large, challenging us to seek equitable solutions like Universal Basic Income (UBI) to safeguard those displaced by technological advancements.

Our insightful exploration not only highlights automation’s undeniable benefits but also urges a societal shift towards UBI as a means to address the economic disparities it may exacerbate, fostering a more inclusive future for all.

How Automation is Changing the Labor Market Game?

Job automation is a worthwhile process and we should not stop it. Ultimately, the automation of jobs will lead to a vast reduction in errors and a significant increase in productivity. McKinsey’s report said it would become a significant competitive differentiator .

Also, the economic benefits of robotization include major improvements in worker safety and flexibility that surpass previous industrial tools .

Technical advances have had an impact on the economy by raising the quality of life through mass production, restructuring the labor force, and achieving high rates of economic growth.

Major inequalities still persist on a national and global scale and technical advances did not eliminate traditional segregation of occupations by sex.

Rapid changes in total employment in manufacturing sectors observe alongside high rates of creative destruction that it’s necessary for economic growth.

As automation grows, there are enormous implications for organizational and leadership development:

To leverage the automation potential that is distributed across their organizations, leaders from the top down will need to redefine jobs and processes. Besides labor savings, there are many other opportunities.

During our modeling of the potential benefits of automation for business processes across a number of industries, we determined that the benefits are typically between three and ten times greater than the costs (increasing output, increasing quality, and improving reliability, as well as the ability to perform some tasks at superhuman levels).

With the emergence of increasingly automated firms, the ability to staff, manage, and lead them will become a significant competitive advantage .

With technological advancements, society will produce more and purchase things at lower prices, thus reducing the need for labor.

But jobs can disappear!

A cheaper product will only be available if people can afford it .

Fully automatable jobs are at risk of disappearing, which is dangerous! In the next five years, some seven million jobs will be replaced by automation and robots, according to a recent World Economic Forum report .

According to a study conducted by Oxford University, 47 percent of U.S. jobs are highly automatable .

Of course, some sources mention In the long run, job automation will expand the economy, even though the occupations themselves will be different from the ones we have today.

And others advise familiarize yourself with all the things that computers do in your line of work so that you can become a close collaborator with them. The other approach is to focus on those tasks that are unlikely to be performed by computers anytime soon. If machines eat away part of your job, the part that’s left will be the part you are particularly good at.

We have to develop something to prevent job automation’s bad effects!

However, I don’t think these perspectives solve the problem we are really facing with it.

Job automation maybe leed to:

“Average Is Over: Powering America Beyond the Age of the Great Stagnation” forecasts the breakdown of modern economies into two groups: a small minority of highly educated people will become wealthy aristocracy by working collaboratively with automated systems; the vast majority will earn little or nothing, living in shantytowns and working with highly automated production machines, surviving on low-priced goods created by the first group .

Increasing the use of technology will inevitably lead to greater inequality, but it will also reward those who are able to shorten the workweek and retire earlier.

So to address these problems, We need more solutions to sustain our society.

UBI can solve the problem

Creative destruction and technological revolution lead society to the wealth gap.

Productivity growth should lead to an overall reduction of the gap between rich and poor countries, but this hasn’t been clearly achieved.

As technology advances, two competing effects on employment result:

the destruction effect that requires workers to reallocate their labor supply, and the capitalization effect that creates new employment in high-productivity industries.

Data show that from 1969 to 2009, median male earnings decreased by 28 percent when all non-working men are counted as below-median earners .

Due to automation, many clerical and production jobs have disappeared or wages have fallen since the 1980s, while high-skilled analytical jobs have increased .

Thus, instead of smashing looms or preparing for mass unemployment, researchers recommend transforming American education to equip more people with information-management skills .

Those who have lost their jobs, need to learn more and increase their productivity which is impossible if they don’t have enough money to assign to education.

How to encourage people to educate more rather than find a job?

As a result of these changes, some researchers believe education and training need to be improved, job creation policies for employers implemented, and wage supplements provided for workers to accommodate the changing labor market.

The displaced might need an enhanced set of benefits to “make work pay,” such as more generous earned income tax credits, better child care, paid leave, and wage insurance that replaces some of the lost wages.

In order to prevent exacerbating inequality in the labor market, new technologies must share the higher productivity they will create with workers.

Throughout society, the balance between job conservation and technological progress reflects the distribution of power within society .

I think the best approach to share these benefits with society is universal basic income.

In a UBI system, all members of society receive a regular payment from the government or public institution .

A Universal Basic Income is not meant to burden the state with lavish lifestyles, but to ease the financial insecurity that automation and technology bring .

Providing a UBI would provide a safety net for those who lost their jobs to automation, as well as allow us to create value without human labor .

An increase in the minimum wage and a change in economic priorities could inspire a sense of solidarity among people and improve work-life balance and well-being.

UBI has been criticized for its negative impact on human productivity, but research appears to show that it does not reduce productivity and can coexist with a robot tax that would reduce the substitution rate and provide funds to support it .

3 UBI approaches to solving the inequality disease

Addressing the widening gap of inequality exacerbated by job automation, Universal Basic Income (UBI) offers a promising remedy. Here are three innovative approaches to leveraging UBI in combatting the inequality disease:

1. Flat Universal Payment: This approach advocates for distributing a standard, unconditional sum of money to every citizen, regardless of their income level or employment status. The essence of this method lies in its simplicity and inclusivity, ensuring that everyone has access to a basic standard of living. It aims to mitigate the risk of poverty, promote consumer spending for economic growth, and support individuals as they transition between jobs or pursue education, thereby smoothing the economic disparities heightened by automation.
2. Tiered or Conditional UBI: Unlike the flat universal payment, a tiered UBI system would adjust the benefit amount based on certain criteria, such as income, wealth levels, or specific needs (e.g., families with children). This method seeks to target inequality more directly by allocating more resources to those in greater need, thus reducing the wealth gap more efficiently. While this approach involves more complex administration, it ensures that the benefits of UBI are felt more where they are needed most, potentially offering a more effective means to counterbalance the inequalities spawned by technological advancements.
3. Hybrid Approach with Incentivized Participation: This innovative model combines UBI with incentives for engagement in community service, education, or part-time employment. It aims to not only provide a safety net but also encourage continued economic and social contribution. For instance, individuals could receive basic income support with additional bonuses for engaging in activities that benefit societal well-being, lifelong learning, or local economies. This approach tackles inequality by ensuring basic financial security while promoting a more dynamic and participatory society, encouraging personal development and community involvement alongside the benefits of UBI.

Each of these UBI approaches addresses the challenge of inequality from different angles, reflecting a spectrum of strategies to harness the potential of UBI in creating a more equitable society in the face of rapid technological change.

Summary: What is clear about job automation?

It is clear that automation is both positive and negative for workers, and the new generation of automation that is being driven primarily by robotics and artificial intelligence will likely result in more worker displacement and inequality than previous generations.

Workers need sensible policies to help them adapt to these changes and to take advantage of the higher productivity that new technologies will bring. Universal Basic Income can solve the wealth distribution problem.

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