Fast Company has a pretty well-thought out article online, overnight — one that quotes Chris Smalls, the President of the Amazon Labor Union. And the struggle here — is real.

With the ALU still trying to force Amazon into collective bargaining, based on the various election wins — as the NLRA clearly provides… and Mr. Bezos using every lawyers’ trick in the book of federal tactical lawfare to foot drag, and delay that bargaining order… it could well be that non-human workforce will cut by as much as 20% the union’s likely membership roles, even before a bargaining order results in a formal seated negotiation for a collective bargaining agreement.

With machine learning / AI already helping accelerate the ramp up the learning curve, for one armed mechanical devices, now rapidly executing sorting operations in at least one warehouse (albeit as a demonstration project), this is not simply a “gee-whiz” piece. Do go read it all, but here’s a bit:

…Chris Smalls, president of the Amazon Labor Union, says it seems inevitable that Amazon may eventually use the new technology to cut jobs, even if it won’t happen overnight. “It’s expected—I know they were always pushing toward that direction,” he says. “Even though they made this announcement, I believe they’re still a ways away from [full automation]. It would be pretty difficult to massively swap out the workforce that they have.”

Smalls believes that Amazon’s push for automation is a major reason why unionizing warehouse workers is so crucial, especially amid high rates of injury and turnover. “If they can create a [system] where the machinery is helping reduce injuries, I support it,” he says. “Replacing jobs? Not so much. I just hope to see that these jobs are unionized and they have some say in how the AI and technology is being incorporated….”

We shall see — onward. Ever… onward. That’s the first installment on Amazon labor matters for November — we expect to have two more this month, for those of you keeping score at home. . . in Music City. Have a blast as you prepare for the next ride around the Sun… smile.

नमस्ते