General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Food Stamp Recipient Writes Epic Letter After Being Harshly Treated and Judged By Customer [View all]MADem
(135,425 posts)Technically speaking, the advent of barcode scanners had the potential to "throw people out of a job" because the checkout person no longer had to input the code for the department as well as the price of the item, speeding up the lines immeasurably. A cashier no longer had to have much in the way of skill to check a person out with a reasonable amount of speed--all they had to be able to do was distinguish a "good" beep from a bad one.
Every tech advance changes the job market. People who made wagon wheels and buggy whips were fucked when the Model T took off. They had to adjust and learn a new skill. It's how societies evolve.
In ancient Rome, there used to be people who ran around all day collecting urine, which was used in the drycleaning process for those fancy Roman togas. Alas, that job is no more--I don't think there are many people crying over the loss of it.
Like it--or not--personal interaction at check out is coming to be something that people will have to seek out. The landscape is changing in that regard, and no amount of complaining is going to change it. Many people prefer to do it themselves because they dislike standing in a line, and can do it faster than the store employee, particularly if they are purchasing just a few items.