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Went in to get a coffee at the McD's on 23rd near Madison and there were 2 automated ordering kiosks installed with a few corporate McD's suites watching.
If they are still going to take their time fixing my order, then I don't think this is such a huge step in the right direction. Ultimately, in my view this is a soft rollout of a plan to save money by getting rid of cashiers/order-takers. But, if the automated lines at various supermarkets are any indication, these systems are likely only going to add to the time it takes to place an order as people are confused, can't read the print on the screen, demand help from cooks in the back to change their order from "ice" to "no ice," etc., all despite having used the system multiple times in the past.
Spoke to this earlier this year when everyone was going on about increasing minimum wage and so forth. Fast food restaurants have been using automated ordering in other countries such as OZ for awhile now, it was only a matter of time before it arrived in the USA.
This is nothing more than yet another case of technology replacing low skill jobs and or those requiring little to no education. It is also a continuation of the overall trend you see in the American labour market; that is the career to have is one that cannot be outsourced to technology in whole. Nursing, medicine, law, etc... all have been impacted by technology but you aren't going to find nurses being replaced wholly by a machine, well not yet anyway.
OTOH why would any business pay a cashier at MikeyD's nearly $20/hour (or whatever amount the raise the minimum wage groups are asking), when it can install machines that will do the job cheaply?
Automated ordering does not require mandatory PTO, health benefits, speaking to about their attitude towards customers, etc....
^ Stop scaring people already. Nurses have been insourced from other countries, by the way.
Are franchises just another american scam or do they really make profits?
Nurses were brought from the Philippines and elsewhere to deal with shortages, something that in most markets no longer exists. In fact some Philippines nurses in NYC and elsewhere are having just a hard a time finding work as native born nurses because the field is currently glutted. The only places still actively "importing" Philippine nurses are places where it is hard to nearly impossible to get American born to work. Areas such as LTC, nursing homes, and locations such as North Dakota.
Am not attempting to "scare" anyone, just simply stating the facts. You can choose to stick your head in the sand or be proactive and see what is going on around you.
Tens if not scores of jobs have vanished and or have been significantly altered by technology, and the list keeps growing. Low hanging fruit such as cashiers, toll collectors, token booth agents, etc... are and have been the first to go.
Am not that old but still remember when bus drivers gave change. Now with "Select Bus Service" you pay before boarding or else you don't get on.
When ATM cards first came out everyone said they will never catch on as people would prefer to use cash. Well things have not turned out that way have they? It is now entirely possible to live your life without having to really carry cash. I can even pay for taxi fares using my Amex points, how cool is that?
You can choose to stick your head in the sand or be proactive and see what is going on around you. It is now entirely possible to live your life without having to really carry cash. I can even pay for taxi fares using my Amex points, how cool is that?
To each is own. It's just kind of crazy how people can justify killing jobs instead of creating more jobs. Cash still rules tho.
I have seen these kiosks in other parts of the world already
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