With technological advancement, increasingly more robots are being employed in different sectors, particularly in jobs that appear difficult or dangerous for human beings. Most people are convinced that robots will take their jobs in the future. On the contrary, some individuals have a conflicting perception that robots do not have the ability to perform the tasks that human beings do since they tend to always repeat a given task and do not have the capacity to think.
Although robots cannot totally replace human jobs, they have additional benefits in different aspects (Reinhart, 2018). Robots do not require retirement and health allowances like humans; this makes it cheaper to use them than hire employees. Robots have the capacity to carry out jobs nonstop, which is beneficial for organizations because they increase productivity and profitability.
Substitution of Human Beings with Robots
Robots have replaced some of the jobs that were previously done by human beings. In some industries, functions such as the transit of raw materials in the production unit have been substituted entirely. In such operations, robots move items from one point to another at high speed and with no delays. Robots operate without fatigue and may work even for 24 hours each day (Katz & Halpern, 2014). Most robots require the input of people as controllers, while others do not require being guided. Robots that need to be controlled are better than the ones that are only programmed to operate devoid of human guidance since they cannot substitute people completely.
In some sectors, the job done by human beings is fundamental and nearly impossible to replace by robots. A good instance of such a sector is the health field. Even if there will be developments in the health sector, it is also impossible for robots to offer all the care given by health professionals. For instance, robots may not make a correct diagnosis. Irrespective of the improvements in technology in the health sector, there is yet to be a robot that is savvy enough to undertake all the tasks accomplished by a physician.
Drawbacks of Robots
The benefit that human beings have over robots lies in their intelligence. Human employees have the ability to think and fine-tune in line with the state of affairs. For instance, in the course of an operation, a doctor can feel the impact of the force when pulling a suturing thread and approximate the requirement for more energy or not (Gupta & Poo, 2018). Nevertheless, a robot may easily cause more harm in such a situation since it lacks the feedback mechanism that humans have, and which makes it suitable for them to successfully perform tasks that require much intelligence. A person can carefully assess an occurrence and mull over the best approach while even making changes, but a robot will carry out the assigned task as prescribed or directed without making appropriate modifications that require thinking comprehensively.
Labor Benefits
The ability to work for long devoid of getting fatigued is an advantage of robots over human beings. For instance, a robot used to take objects from one place to another may keep doing so throughout the day. If it were people, they would require some time to rest or ultimately collapse because they are unable to withstand cumbersome work for many hours nonstop. Moreover, a robot is not governed by labor laws regarding the number of working hours as in the case of human beings who work for about eight hours as per regulations, and any time above the recommended is compensated as overtime.
Robots do not require overtime. In fact, they are not paid anything. Regardless of the acquisition of robots being expensive, the fact that they are given no remuneration or allowance makes them cheaper than employees in the long run (Katz & Halpern, 2014). The amount of money that a company using robots would have issued as wages forms a fraction of the profit. The only expenditures for robots are in their acquisition and maintenance, which is much less than the expenses of paying workers for a long period.
Decreased Corrupt Deals
Unlike human beings, robots are not susceptible to corruption. Bribery is happening in most organizations, particularly in developing nations. To decrease corruption, robots will continue being increasingly used, which replaces human jobs (Borland & Coelli, 2017). A robot will use a given approach in all situations regardless of the influence of external conditions. This is in contrast with an employee whose friend or relative may have given favors to receive special consideration in return. For instance, in a robotic betting system, the robot chooses without prejudice the person who has won, unlike in an occurrence where a person is in charge and subject to bias.
Conclusion
With developments in technology, robots are being employed in different organizations, mainly in jobs that appear hard or hazardous for human beings. Most employees believe that robots will take up their jobs in the future. Robots can carry out jobs nonstop, which is favorable for companies because they boost efficiency and profitability. Irrespective of the acquisition of robots being costly, the fact that they are given no salary or allowance makes them cheaper than workers in the long term.
References
Borland, J., & Coelli, M. (2017). Are robots taking our jobs? Australian Economic Review, 50(4), 377-397.
Gupta, S., & Poo, A. (2018). Who will care for the carers? Foreign Policy. Web.
Katz, J. E., & Halpern, D. (2014). Attitudes towards robots’ suitability for various jobs affected robot appearance. Behaviour & Information Technology, 33(9), 941-953.
Reinhart, R. (2018). Most U.S. workers unafraid of losing their jobs to robots. Gallup. Web.