Planera report finds automating many US hands-on jobs still unaffordable
Thinking robots will take over hands-on jobs soon? Not so fast.
A new Planera report says automating roles like nursing assistants, home health and personal care aides, and construction laborers is still way pricier than just paying people, sometimes by nearly nine times.
The study compared real automation costs with US wage data and found that building advanced robots for these physical jobs just isn't affordable yet.
Automating nursing assistants costs $375,100 annually
Nursing assistants top the list at $375,100 per year to automate, almost nine times their $42,200 salary.
Home health and personal care aides and construction laborers also cost hundreds of thousands a year to replace with machines.
Teaching assistants would cost more than five times their wage to automate.
Meanwhile, cashiers are actually cheaper to automate than to pay, a reminder that not all jobs face the same robot threat right now.
The report also points out that humanoid robots for care work aren't even on the market yet, so for now, humans still have the edge in these roles.