Abstract
Recently, economic studies on labor market developments have indicated that there is a potential threat of technological mass unemployment. Both smart robotics and information technology may perform a broad range of tasks that today are fulfilled by human labor. This development could lead to vast inequalities. Proponents of an unconditional basic income have, therefore, employed this scenario to argue for their cause. In this chapter, the author argues that, although a basic income might be a valid answer to the challenge of technological unemployment, it fails to account for some ethical problems specific to future expectations of mass unemployment. The author introduces the proposal of an unconditional basic capital and shows how it can address these problems adequately and avoid objections against a basic income. However, the basic capital proposal cannot replace all redistributive social policies. It has to be interpreted as a supplement to either a basic income or more traditional redistributive policies.
TopScenarios Of A Post-Work Society
What will happen in the near future when a large number of jobs cease to exist due to automation? Expectations of future labor market developments range from pessimistic scenarios of poverty and vast inequalities to future societies of abundance and a liberation from all sorts of material necessities. In this section, I aim to sketch these scenarios in order to outline how certain fears and hopes might be based on unrealistic assumptions. Nevertheless, the picture of the different scenarios gives us some insights with regard to the question of how to address the challenge of automation and unemployment with the help of different policy options. The overview reveals some societal processes we may already observe today. Furthermore, it shows which anticipations might be justified. I will first draw the picture of a so-called post-work utopia in order to elucidate the great prospects automation holds for our society. I then contrast this idea with what I call the post-work dystopia. I argue that the idea is probably too pessimistic. The section concludes with some lessons to be learned from different future expectations.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Technological Unemployment: A sort of unemployment that occurs when people are without work (and seeking work) due to innovative production processes and labor-saving organizational solutions.
Luddite Fallacy: False belief that the number of tasks to be performed by human labor is stable.
Product Innovations: The discovery of new marketable products.
Basic Income Guarantee (BIG): Redistributive scheme that grants every citizen of a country a periodically paid amount of money, irrespective of the other income the citizen generates; intended to cover recipients living costs.
Basic Capital Grant (BCG): Redistributive scheme that consists of a single, non-periodical lump-sum payment to every citizen; intended to enable its recipients to take an investment early in their lives.
Process Innovations: The discovery of improved methods to produce goods at lower costs.