Warehousing has perhaps been forefront of concerns about the pernicious effects of automation on the labor market, with doomsayers concerned that machines will automate many of the jobs currently undertaen in warehouses across the land.

A new report from the University of Illinois at Chicago’s Center for Urban Economic Development agrees that the sector is due for disruption, but doesn’t believe that jobs will be lost altogether.  The news is not entirely positive however, as the authors do warn that there may be an indelibly negative impact on both the character and quality of warehouse work as a result of new technology.

“Over 1 million people work in warehouses across the U.S., a number that is growing due in part to the rise of e-commerce,” the authors say. “The pressure to meet quick order turnaround, driven largely by Amazon’s standard-setting delivery promises, has contributed to onerous labor conditions in warehouses across the country, conditions that appear poised to worsen in the coming years.”

Changing work

The research found a number of clear changes to warehousing work.  For instance, the authors believe work is likely to intensify due to the growing workload and the speed demands of consumers.  This, coupled with new approaches to monitoring workers, can make for a stressful job.

They also highlight the risk of deskilling, with roles broken down into subtasks and an intense application of technology resulting in many of the skills that warehouse workers had relied upon no longer being as important.  This can lead to higher job insecurity and lower wages.

The nature of the industry also presents a racial connotation to the author’s findings.  They note that 66% of warehouse workers are people of color, versus just 37% of the wider American labor force.  So any disruption to the industry is going to be borne disproportionately by people of color.

Despite the seemingly doomladen prognosis for the sector, the authors aren’t entirely negative about the prospects for warehouse work.

“Warehouse operators stand to benefit significantly from new technologies, but it’s critical that these gains be shared, that workers be involved in identifying which efficiencies should be prioritized and what hazards are being introduced, and that experimentation unfolds with regard for more than just productivity increases,” they conclude.