{"product_id":"automation-and-the-future-of-work-isbn-9781839761294","title":"Automation and the Future of Work","description":"\u003cb\u003eA consensus-shattering account of automation technologies and their effect on workplaces and the labor market\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn this consensus-shattering account of automation technologies, Aaron Benanav investigates the economic trends that will shape our working lives far into the future.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Silicon Valley titans, politicians, techno-futurists, and social critics have united in arguing that we are on the cusp of an era of rapid technological automation, heralding the end of work as we know it. But does the muchdiscussed “rise of the robots” really explain the long-term decline in the demand for labor?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eAutomation and the Future of Work\u003c\/i\u003e uncovers the deep weaknesses of twenty-first-century capitalism and the reasons why the engine of economic growth keeps stalling. Equally important, Benanav goes on to salvage from automation discourse its utopian content: the positive vision of a world without work. What social movements, he asks, are required to propel us into post-scarcity if technological innovation alone can’t deliver it? In response to calls for a permanent universal basic income that would maintain a growing army of redundant workers, he offers a groundbreaking counterproposal.“A powerful and persuasive explanation of why capitalism can’t create jobs or generate incomes for a majority of humanity.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Mike Davis, author of \u003ci\u003eSet the Night on Fire\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “An excellent, insightful account of the contours of our present labor crisis. Benanav articulately makes the case for a post-scarcity future.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Robert Skidelsky, biographer of John Maynard Keynes\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “A highly quantitative analysis of the nature of contemporary unemployment flowers into something quite different and unexpected: a qualitative argument for the invention of new collective capacities in a world where work is no longer central to social life.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Kristin Ross, author of \u003ci\u003eCommunal Luxury\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “A rare book that manages to soberly assess the contemporary landscape while keeping a clear eye on our utopian horizons. This is an important intervention into current discussions around technology and work—and a must-read for anyone who believes capitalist decay is not the only future.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Nick Srnicek, author of \u003ci\u003ePlatform Capitalism\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Benanav dissects and disproves the idea that automation is eradicating work … We don’t need to wait for robots to do all the work; we can collectively decide what we need, then plan the economy to achieve it.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Paris Marx, \u003ci\u003ePassage\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Thought-provoking … packs quite a punch of macroeconomics and practical philosophy.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—\u003ci\u003eInternational Policy Digest\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“He can write movingly and do so on a global scale.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Patrick McGinty, \u003ci\u003ePittsburgh Post Gazette\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “The two parts of Benanav’s book—analytic and utopian—correspond to the two halves of the Marxian project: to both interpret the world, and change it.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Lola Seaton, \u003ci\u003eNew Statesman\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Compelling reading. A rising star among the intelligentsia of the left.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—\u003ci\u003eDublin Review of Books\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA powerful critique … [Benanav] carefully chart[s] how our economic system is unable to deliver further social progress and … set[s] out a believable vision of a non-capitalist future.”\u003cbr\u003e—\u003cb\u003eAlexis Moraitis, \u003ci\u003eROAR\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Crucial … \u003ci\u003eAutomation and the Future of Work\u003c\/i\u003e is impressively multifaceted for such a short text … an excellent book. ”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Mack Penner, \u003ci\u003eLabour \/ Le Travail\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “\u003ci\u003eAutomation and the Future of Work\u003c\/i\u003e gathers significant cold water to pour on automation’s fever dreams.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Amelia Horgan, \u003ci\u003eRadical Philosophy\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Important … an eye-opening perspective for a convincing and encouraging political project.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Görkem Giray, \u003ci\u003eMarx \u0026amp; Philosophy Review of Books\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Meticulous … provides crucial insights into the causes of global stagnation and its effects on the kinds of work we do now.” \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Clinton Williamson, \u003ci\u003eThe Baffler\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eAaron Benanav\u003c\/b\u003e is Assistant Professor of Sociology at Syracuse University. He  has written for the \u003ci\u003eGuardian\u003c\/i\u003e, the \u003ci\u003eNation\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eNew Left Review\u003c\/i\u003e.","brand":"Verso","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46303374803173,"sku":"NP9781839761294","price":19.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9781839761294.jpg?v=1767721977","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/automation-and-the-future-of-work-isbn-9781839761294","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}