Which side is worse: the self-checkout killing cashier jobs or the 'we need a human for every task' crowd?

I was at the Walmart on 82nd Ave last week and saw 16 self-checkout lanes with ONE person watching them. Meanwhile the regular lanes had 2 cashiers for 20 people waiting. On one hand I get it, stores want to cut labor costs. On the other hand, some folks say we should fight every bit of automation to save jobs. But don't the self-checkouts also create new jobs maintaining them? Where do you draw the line?

3 comments

3 Comments

shane_clark1mo ago

Man I feel this so hard I once tried to use a self-checkout and it yelled at me for putting my bag in the bagging area too slow. Guess that makes me the real automation problem here, huh?

ward.kim1mo ago

The 82nd Ave Walmart situation you describe is exactly what I see at my local store too. It feels wrong watching people wait forever while machines sit empty. But jobs that just stand there scanning items were already on thin ice before self checkout came along. Those maintenance jobs are real though, my neighbor fixes these machines and says he's busier than ever. Maybe the real problem is stores cutting cashiers without thinking about customer service or human dignity.

sage_moore371mo ago

Jobs that just stand there scanning items were already on thin ice" - wow @ward.kim that hit me hard! I never thought about it that way but you're right, those positions were probably going away no matter what. It's wild how we get upset about the machines when the real problem is stores not caring about the people stuck waiting. Your neighbor being busier than ever with repairs is so true, I see the same thing at my local store with the techs running around. But it's just sad that we traded human interaction for slightly faster checkout that doesn't even work half the time.