> There has been no other time in human history when ALL low-skill labor was in the process of being automated in such a generalized way.
Resist hindsight bias here; the work we consider low-skill today--working in factories--was the high-skilled labor of its day. The low-skill labor it replaced was largely the large-scale manual labors of raising food, producing energy, and making basic everyday items.
The need for more educated, better trained, smarter workers during the Industrial Revolution led directly to the establishment of free, publicly funded schools for all through high school. That was a major cultural shift, a huge public investment, and a huge jump in the mental capabilities of the workforce as a whole.
I think it's arguable that now we're facing another similar shift, and we need to make another jump in how we educate people. The number of people who get left behind depends on how well we recognize and commit to this shift.
I would argue that a starting point is to accept that the economy is changing, and we have to do something to prepare everyone for that. Wishing that textile or car factories would go back to centers of mass employment won't really protect anyone.
Resist hindsight bias here; the work we consider low-skill today--working in factories--was the high-skilled labor of its day. The low-skill labor it replaced was largely the large-scale manual labors of raising food, producing energy, and making basic everyday items.
The need for more educated, better trained, smarter workers during the Industrial Revolution led directly to the establishment of free, publicly funded schools for all through high school. That was a major cultural shift, a huge public investment, and a huge jump in the mental capabilities of the workforce as a whole.
I think it's arguable that now we're facing another similar shift, and we need to make another jump in how we educate people. The number of people who get left behind depends on how well we recognize and commit to this shift.
I would argue that a starting point is to accept that the economy is changing, and we have to do something to prepare everyone for that. Wishing that textile or car factories would go back to centers of mass employment won't really protect anyone.