Dear rehctub,

I wouldn't have thought that butchers would be
affected by automation. I had always assumed
that it would be more the repetitive and boring
work that would be taken over by machines.

Perhaps students need to find out what jobs give
them the best chance of not being replaced by a
machine.

Anyway here's a link that I found interesting:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-12-04/kohler-what-jobs-will-be-left-once-the-machines-take-over/

The ABC tells us that 44 % of jobs will be automated in the
next 10 years.

It's unfortunate that many people don't do their jobs today
because they like the work. They do it out of necessity.

cont'd ...

My apologies, I made a mistake in typing the previous
link. Here's the correct version:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-12-04/kohler-what-jobs-will-be-left-once-the-machines-take-over/5133218

Foxy, we have automated machines that debone chickens, remove the excess meat from bones and make sausages without human hands other than to push buttons.

Most of the large supermarkets now have the bulk of their meats prepared off site and most of this is now sliced, diced, stripped by machines so yes a lot of jobs are gone.

S for the jobs you refer to I would suggest nursing and aged care are two fields that will never (big statement) be automated.

I will be retired soon and my son is being groomed to take over my business and is undergoing intensive training as we speak, along with my other boys I have with me. I have only seen two previous apprentices come all the way with me and im proud to say they have both managed shops.

Perhaps we might wake up one day to see supermarkets dismantled and a rebirth of fresh food shops. One can only hope but you never know if we find ourselves with 20-40% unemployment.

Dear rehctub,

We can indeed only hope that quality comes
back into all food shops. What a difference
that would make. Congratulations on the way
you've trained your boys. I wish that your shop
would be near where I live. I would certainly
support your business.

Is butchery really worthy of still being called a trade? I know in the past butchers were expected to know everything. From slaughtering, even if they never did it they still had to know and understand it, to boning and breaking down whole carcasses. How many butchers today do more than just cut up a prime cut into steaks/portions etc? Most of the butchers in the supermarkets seem seem to be just glorified shelf stackers. The meat comes in already cut and packaged elsewhere.

I sympathise with you flesher but it is the same for all of us. The good old days of workmanship, competence and pride at work are long gone replaced with greed, "efficiency" and exploitation. I used to be a chef but the changes in that industry, all bad, drove me out and I ended up dismantling EWaste until recently. My employers shut down as the industry changed(or should I say was rorted) and was taken over by huge multinationals using giant crushing and sorting machines to replace people like me.

Everything is about money and greed these days and the results are that we lose all the things that we cant put a dollar price on. Caring, compassion, pride, honour, trust, workmanship, friendliness, honesty, all thrown aside because you cant make a buck out of them.
What a sad world.