It's hard to believe that the check-out register cashier will be a viable job posting much longer, particularly as self-checkout lines get longer and self-checkouts get more numerous. Technology is simply replacing the necessity of a human cashier. This is the case with many industries around the country; where software, mechanized tools, and even robots are gradually replacing positions once held by human beings. This is the impetus behind Martin Ford's controversial new book, The Lights in the Tunnel: Automation. Accelerating Technology and the Economy of the Future. Ford's concern is that as software and robots edge humans out of their jobs, mass market buying power and consumer confidence will erode to the point that the entire global economy may collapse.

Warehousing and manufacturing jobs have already begun the steady decline to more automated services, and even the service industry doesn't require nearly the number of human workers it once did. That said, I find it difficult to believe that the economy could deteriorate because of technological progress. The Luddites at the turn of the last century organized around the same basic principle; that because of technological advancement people were losing jobs and the economy was sure to collapse. Of course, it didn't work that way. Just because the electric loom, combustion engine, or the assembly line were utilized by companies doesn't mean that the labor force shrank. Instead, technological progression seems to reorganize the labor force, removing jobs from some areas (usually more menial ones) and replacing them with other, more skilled jobs. A robotic arm may replace a worker on a manufacturing line, but it's going to replace that worker with three others; one to install the arm, one to maintain the arm, and one to consult the floor manager in its operation.

As an educator, we are constantly advocating for further education past high school; whether it be at a vocational or trade school, a 4-year college, or even an apprenticeship program. That's because all of the data about the 21st century workforce shows increasing specialization, which means more education, more knowledge, more skills. A specialized workforce is not one that is unable to compete, or one in which buying power is diminished. On the contrary, a specialized workforce, which is what is evolving today as technology pushes labor reorganization, is one with increased buying power, and increased necessity. I reject the notion that automation could lead to economic collapse. I feel that automation is one symptom of a progressing economy and a gradually specialized, educated, and skilled workforce.