Average annual growth in: Productivity slowdown Pre-recession slowdown Great productivity slowdown Technology-led resurgence Pre-recession deceleration Great Recession and aftermath And yet, the data indicate that today’s fear of robots is outpacing the actual advance of robots. If automation were rapidly accelerating, labor productivity and capital investment would also be surging as fewer workers and more technology did the work. When automation on the farm resulted in the mass migration of Americans from rural to urban areas in the early decades of the 20th century, agricultural states led the way in instituting universal public high school education to prepare for the future. While breakthroughs could come at any time, the problem with automation isn’t robots; it’s politicians, who have failed for decades to support policies that let workers share the wealth from technology-led growth. Productivity and pay rose in tandem for decades after World War II, until labor and wage protections began to be eroded.
