This situation came to stark life recently, as reported by the South China Morning Post, stating that Foxconn-the largest contract manufacturer of electronics on the planet-has replaced 60,000 human workers with robots. The job cuts are due to the implementation of robots at the factory, as Xu Yulian, a Foxconn spokesperson, revealed that “The Foxconn factory has reduced its employee strength from 110,000 to 50,000, thanks to the introduction of robots”.
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“More companies are likely to follow suit”, the official added. It’s not known exactly which products are manufactured at the Kunshan plant. Director of Taiwan Investment Service Office, He Rongrong, said that the first factory in the country was built in 1989 by a Taiwanese company and since then the entrepreneurship has grown significantly.
More than 500 companies in the Chinese province of Dongguan have spent a total of $630M on robot and AI technology to replace human workers since September 2014.
The company has not disclosed what factory the robots are working in and if they will be manufacturing the iPhone 7. Instead, the company says it is simply using the machines to “replace repetitive tasks previously done by employees” while allowing those employees to focus on more valuable parts of the manufacturing process like R&D and quality control.
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Economists have issued dire warnings about how automation will affect the job market, with one report, from consultants Deloitte in partnership with Oxford University, suggesting that 35% of jobs were at risk over the next 20 years.
