Computers and Self-Service

Chris Johnson
One of the main ideas Greenbaum talks about in relation to technology in the work place is that it is not the technology alone that causes changes in work, but the technology plus management objectives. These “objectives” are to lower costs for the company and ultimately maximization of profits at all costs. As a result, technology is re-engineering jobs so that work becomes deskilled and divided up. This is exactly the case in the three NPR topics. The first involves the airline industry using an innovative way of taking tickets; getting rid of ticket counters and replacing them with kiosks. This move eliminates the use of employees to manual lift and check baggage and is said to “eliminate injuries,” but what about the jobs of these people? This new technology makes their labor less needed, and will probably lead to layoffs. Also since their jobs have become less skilled their wages could fall because they are now easily replaced. The 2nd issue involves using cellular phones to check in boarding passes. This also raises many of the same problems as the kiosk. If more and more people are using this new check in form this means that less and less workers are needed; work has been deskilled, divided, and replaced with a computer program. The 3rd and final issue deals with Papa Johns and other pizza companies turning to new ways of ordering pizza via internet or text message. To me this doesn’t have the potential to be nearly as great a problem as the others, because even if pizza’s are ordered via some new technology workers are still going to have to make them. However, with these new methods on the rise the need for large stores with many employees will fall. Many will look at these things and probably just say something like “that’s just being efficient” or “if it’s cheaper and faster why not go for it?” For me this is the real issue, because new technology does make things cheaper and more efficient, but are we willing to sacrifice millions of job for a couple dollars on production and labor costs?