Stefan Milovanovic at Geek Spin reports more than 1,000 Workers at General Motors’ (GM) flagship Detroit Assembly Plant were idled, many of them indefinitely, as the company installed 50 robots. The United Auto Workers (UAW) is calling the move exactly what it appears to be: automation is displacing people. The robots in question, known as “Cobots” (short for Collaborative Robots), have been installed on the assembly line at Factory Zero, the Detroit-Hamtramck EV Plant where GM builds its electric trucks. At Factory Zero, the Cobots are now bolting body panels onto vehicles as they move down the assembly line, working alongside the people who haven’t been laid off, as per AutoBlog. GM, however, has been careful in its framing, insisting the machines are not replacing Workers - but are instead helping the plant stay competitive while improving safety and ergonomics for the remaining Workers. The laid-off Workers are only temporarily idled, according to the company, but GM has yet to provide a timeline for their return. UAW Local 22 President James Cotton isn’t buying any of it. To him, the Cobots are about one thing: Taking away jobs from Union Members.

To Read This Labor News Report In Its Entirety, Go To: Unions are furious after GM replaces 1,000 workers with 50 robots