Robots are replacing longshoremen

The longshoremen aren’t happy.

The push over the last decade by international maritime ports to fully automate operations has sparked the ire of many U.S. longshoremen whose high-paying jobs and way of life are at stake. The trend also sets up a battle between their unions and companies and governments who see automation as a cleaner, more efficient and more cost-friendly alternative to the current system.
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“Those robots represent hundreds of (lost) jobs,” Bobby Olvera Jr., president of International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 13, told the Press-Telegram. “It means hundreds of people that aren’t shopping. They aren’t paying taxes and they aren’t buying homes.”

Questions to ponder….

1) What is the purpose of ports and shipping? To deliver goods or to create jobs?

2) If the purpose is to deliver goods, doesn’t it make sense to do it as efficiently and cost effectively as possible?

3) If the purpose is to create jobs, shouldn’t all forklifts, cranes, carts and so forth be eliminated? After all, the elimination of these labor saving devices would necessitate the creation of thousands of jobs. Limiting the amount one man is allowed to carry would create more.