Robot Baristas as Strikebreakers
Companies are turning to automation as a tool to fight back against industrial action. In coffee, that role could well be played by robot baristas—in fact, it sort of already has.
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Robot Baristas as Strikebreakers
Companies are turning to automation as a tool to fight back against industrial action. In coffee, that role could well be played by robot baristas—in fact, it sort of already has.
3 min read
Last week, I explored the increasing automation push within coffee, paying particular attention to the consequences for baristas. While technological advancements are taking place along the supply chain, it is in cafes that automation is having the most obvious impact.
This is happening at the same time as coffee workers, especially in the United States, are organising and demanding better conditions from their employers. I briefly touched on the connection between unions and automation in last week’s piece, specifically noting how unionising Blank Street baristas referenced the company’s focus on technology as one of their reasons for organising.
But there is another role for automation—and specifically robot baristas—in letting companies respond to the surge of labour organising in coffee. That role is as strikebreaker.
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