# Does Mechanisation and automation actually reduce the number of labourers overall?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-mechanisation-and-automation-actually-reduce-the-number-of-labourers-overall/969606>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [August 13, 2022, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-mechanisation-and-automation-actually-reduce-the-number-of-labourers-overall/969606 "2022-08-13T16:08:06Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 4

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**Author:** ![rbroome](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/838e76/32.png) [@rbroome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rbroome)\
**Post date:** [August 22, 2022, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-mechanisation-and-automation-actually-reduce-the-number-of-labourers-overall/969606/61 "2022-08-22T00:32:44Z")

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> [@md-2000](#):
>
> Was an average blue-collar worker in 1955 really better off than the average worker today?

Of course not. Everything from pollution to medicine to housing to food (have you looked at cookbooks from the 50’s?) to social environment is hugely better now. The “good old days” weren’t. They never were. Of course there were outliers. Being a Berliner in 1944 wasn’t nearly as comfortable as in 1904. But in general, life gets better year over year.

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