
Target, Walmart Automate More Store Tasks - esturk
https://www.wsj.com/articles/target-walmart-automate-more-store-tasks-1530453600
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aresant
Most businesses that rily on unskilled labor are tripling down on automation /
systems engineering.

The common explanation is cost savings, but I've observed another major driver
: quality of service.

Our current unemployment rate is virtually the lowest in 20yrs and it's hard
to hire ANYBODY as a result. (1)

And the low unemployment rate has had the interesting effect of upwards
mobility for the traditional unskilled clerk / laborer / driver / server /
etc.

As a result the labor pool that is showing up is less professional / educated
than they have been in the past which is creating major quality of service
issues, training issues, etc.

Automation in some of these jobs is a necessity, as the automation tech is a
closer reality than availability of "professionalized" unskilled labor.

(1)
[https://www.google.com/publicdata/explore?ds=z1ebjpgk2654c1_...](https://www.google.com/publicdata/explore?ds=z1ebjpgk2654c1_&met_y=unemployment_rate&hl=en&dl=en)

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AlexandrB
> Our current unemployment rate is virtually the lowest in 20yrs and it's hard
> to hire ANYBODY as a result. (1)

This observation is _so weird_ in the context of flat wages and the
proliferation of sub-minimum-wage "gig economy" jobs. If labor was really
scarce, shouldn't that put upward pressure on wages? Perhaps what automation
is doing is giving employers a way out of competing for labor. The long range
consequences seem pretty obvious: massive, rising inequality.

~~~
falcolas
There's a second option I just recently understood in the "high employment ==
high wages" equation - employers can just wait longer for hires at the wages
they're offering. And, based on the way employers keep the jobs posted for
months or years, it seems to be working for them.

I guess in a way it's just another signal that the jobs being filled aren't
_that_ critical.

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protonimitate
I've always found it strange that the most 'critical' job positions are among
the lowest paid / furthest down the totem pole.

I work for a medium-sized established tech company. We've been running without
a CTO and Director of HR for > 6 months. Everything has run smoothly. We've
even had open positions for mid-tier management that have gone unfilled for
long enough that they were deemed 'unnecessary' and the req was closed.

However, we had two of our operations people (one step above entry level)
leave, and our regional office almost tanked completely.

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tsunamifury
It's almost as if a CTO is around to make sure stuff like that doesn't
happen...

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trobertson
No, it is literally operations people who are around to prevent that from
happening. (facetious:) C-levels are around to look pretty and offer pleasant
platitudes during board meetings.

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groupthinking
Self-checkout. I got to the store, get my groceries, and see long lines of
people standing waiting to checkout. There is only one clerk checking people
out; everyone else has to go wait in the self-checkout line. We all stand and
wait. One person has a problem finding a code for veggies. Another can't get
their card to work. Another is wondering why their is a price discrepancy. And
so on; each with a problem that could easily be solved by a clerk in no time
at all, but now they have to stare at the machine, wait for the machine to
tell them there is a problem try to figure it out themselves, they go to the
clerk at the computer screen who can now come and take a look. That clerk, by
the way, does not particularly enjoy dealing with customers and it shows,
because they are all coming to her with stupid questions. Clerks in general
now don't like interacting with customers because they see customers are
looking at them as a kind-of self-checkout+.

When I get to the self-checkout, finally, I feel ten people waiting behind me.
I can't make a mistake! I have to hurry! I scan items quickly, I see them
rolling down to the end of the conveyor belt, piling up. No mistakes! Then I
have to run down and pack all of my groceries before the next person begins,
but it's too late, they are sending down their peanut butter, milk, etc.

~~~
loco5niner
That is not my experience with self-checkout. I guess I'm lucky. I love self-
checkout because I can get through so fast. Yes, I run into problems
sometimes, but the attendant is usually right on top of it.

I welcome this change.

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chrismcb
The store doesn't pay me to work for them. So I refuse to use self check out.
If there was a discount to use it, then I might consider it.

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xstartup
Alright, this is a personal observation of mine:

1\. I go to a store where workers are paid bare minimum, they give me odd
looks and make me feel as if I stole their bread or smth.

2\. I go to premium stores, where I pay more but they treat me better.

So, I go to premium stores even though I am aware I am losing more money,
because in Maslow hierarchy of needs - I am at the top where I want to be
treated better _not_ save more money.

Cost of negative interaction is much much greater for me. I randomly have
flashbacks of negative experiences but I forget all positive or neutral
experiences.

Based on Exchange theory of Price, #2 price is justified.

Now, if you remove the workers in option #2, the interaction goes from
negative to neutral and I'll prefer #1.

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briffle
Costco is a great exception to this rule. Its not a 'premium' store, but they
pay their employees so well, that they have the 'cream of the crop' employees,
and it really does make a difference. In our area, we have a grocery chain
(WinCo) that is similar (discount prices, large warehouse feel). They pay very
well, profit sharing, etc, and have some of the most helpful, knowledgeable,
and fastest employees.

~~~
loco5niner
Yes, Yes, love Costco and Winco. My grandma's city just got a Winco across the
street from their Costco. Awesomeness

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Avshalom
That Target spokeswoman is going to get yelled at for calling them "shoppers"
official corp-speak is "guests"

~~~
frockington
That takes me back to when I worked for Home Depot during the summers. So much
"correct" terminology that it was easier for everyone just to ignore it.
Unfortunately for the spokeswoman I don't think she'll get a pass like
everyone else

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abenedic
> chains seek to free staff to help shoppers.

Of course that is what all the newly redundant staff will be doing. Because
customer service is the top priority of a discount retailer.

~~~
TheChaplain
You can see this in SE Asia, many shops usually have one staff per aisle
assisting shoppers. And shoppers here expect it and use the service.

Does similar setups exist in the US market?

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fake-name
If a store has 1 staff per acre of floor space, it's got a _lot_ of people.

For ultra-budget big-box stores, it can be hard to even _find_ staff
sometimes.

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lovich
The best is when they have a large portion of the store dedicated to selling
things that cannot be bought without an employee helping. At a walmart I
worked at when I was younger there were two aisles of paint to be used in
mixing but we never had anyone on the floor capable of running the machine
since the store opened until I left two years later. There was also the
electronics section which had everything under lock and key and had an
employee with the key available maybe a third of the time.

I also saw the deli open frequently with no one manning it. It wasn't closed,
just had no one to run the machines

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ggg9990
I'm not opposed to interacting with robots but I hate how these are all pushed
out the door WAY before they are even at parity with a human. Self-checkout,
robot delivery in hospitals, Alexa, etc. are absolute garbage

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flukus
Self checkouts aren't automation, it's just making the customer do something
(worse) that the store employees used to take care of. Otherwise gas stations
have been automated for decades.

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Glyptodon
The only thing I like about self checkout is that I don't have to interact
with a human if I'm buying something that might provoke comment.

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Freak_NL
Does that ever happen or is it just a fear of being judged for your purchases?

Cashiers scan hundreds of items during their shift. They are not looking at
the product like you do when you select it from the shelves amongst a number
of alternatives; they are merely glancing at it to get the barcode oriented
towards their scanner. Your curiosity tends to take a back seat with
repetitive work like that (you would be mentally exhausted in an hour if you
did actually 'look' at everything).

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astura
_Some_ cashiers are busybodies that make comments on your purchases. The
majority don't but it can be very upsetting if you _do_ experience it. I had
one question me on what I was going to do with pizza dough, which was... weird
to say the least, I'd assume that someone would be making pizza with pizza
dough. I've had cashiers ask me if food I was buying was good or make comments
on new products they havne't seen yet.

When I was a cashier I certainly looked at the products I was scanning beyond
orienting to the barcode so I don't really know where you're getting that
from. It wasn't "mentally exhausting" or anything either, that's a little
weird to say. In fact, cashier are _required_ to actually 'look' at the
product in some amount of detail because some items need to be bagged a
certain way and they need to check ID on some products, like alcohol.

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yaleman
So many paywalls ... :(

~~~
alwillis
[https://archive.li/m4gye](https://archive.li/m4gye)

