So how well is the economy really doing:
In a brutal act of corporate restructuring, Tyson Foods laid off nearly 5,000 workers on January 20, announcing the closure of its Lexington, Nebraska, beef plant and a reduction to a single shift at its Amarillo, Texas, facility.
All of corporate America is facing layoffs.
I have insulated myself by adding responsibilities and availability. A few others I work with clued in eventually and are doing the same.
There is a person in my department they might target over his performance, but he normally would be very insulated.
Can a robot butcher a chicken? So far humans do it better, but the industry is working on it. Perhaps AI will make the difference. Meat packing is dirty, messy job no one wants. Often filled by immigrants. Likely to be automated as soon as the technology is ready.
The article emphasizes rising costs and squeezed margins. And reduced cattle available for slaughter. Meanwhile beef prices are skyrocketing. And consumers are switching to pork and poultry. The Chinese bought industry leader Smithfield. Smithfield just bought Nathan’s hot dogs.
Will beef and pork butchering be automated? You betcha. Yes, not in the news and unions probably oppose vigorously. But its labor intensive and likely to automate in the future. Yes, those jobs are at risk.
16,000 to go at Amazon: