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Economy
Rise of the restaurant robots? Chipotle and White Castle are spending over $500,000 a month on automation to combat labor shortages and rising food costs - but it is still cheaper than paying human workers
2023-01-04
[Daily Mail, where America gets its news]
  • Fast-food chains are employing robots that flip burgers, brew espressos and greet customers

  • The move to automation is due to labor shortages and rising food costs

  • White Castle uses a burger-flipping, fry-making robot at 100 of its locations, each costing $3,000 a month

  • Chipotle has a robot that makes tortilla chips at one site - this also costs $3,000 a month

  • The cost of these robots is cheaper than paying a human worker
Posted by:Skidmark

#16  It’s been several years since White Castle hung ten off the wave of innovation.
Posted by: Super Hose   2023-01-04 22:40  

#15  OK, so - back in 2013, I was actually in training for Regional Kitchen Manager at Chipotle. This was where I was coming off being blackballed from SQA following the 2008 bust. That said, what I went through and witnessed in my time at Chipotle would be in stark contrast to this. ...for the reason being that robots are not as open to manipulation as distressed humans are. Very interesting.
Posted by: Rex Mundi   2023-01-04 18:05  

#14  Just wait until they start collecting a 'automation tax' on each unit.

That is inevitable as more jobs are automated. Wealth concentration and lots of idle pissed off men is a dangerous combo. It's already at dangerous levels due to short sighted offshoring and low import taxes.

Circulating the profits is also a way to create more demand for the automated services rather than stashing the wealth in oligarchs' bank accounts.
Posted by: Waldemar the Limber5043   2023-01-04 13:43  

#13  The issue around here is manpower. The number are just not there to support all these places.
Posted by: 49 Pan   2023-01-04 13:25  

#12  It you still want lugees on your burger, it's extra.
Posted by: Skidmark   2023-01-04 13:19  

#11  There is no labor shortage, just millions of former workers living better on welfare without having to work at all. Shut off the "bread and circuses" and see how quickly there is a job shortage.
Posted by: NoMoreBS   2023-01-04 13:07  

#10  "Loss of gasoline tax revenue due to EVs is infrastructure."

Besides, since electricity is a public utility and therefore a public monopoly, they can just hump electricity prices according to how many EVs a household has registered. Could do the same with 'Electronic Employees'.
Posted by: swksvolFF   2023-01-04 12:27  

#9  /\ Years ago I heard it was at least a 27% hidden government surcharge on every dollar of wages.
Posted by: magpie   2023-01-04 10:35  

#8  Re: the tax issue. Yeah, I see that they're making great headway taxing EVs by the mile for road use.
Posted by: M. Murcek   2023-01-04 09:18  

#7  But will the robot Haley be as good of a fighter?
Posted by: M. Murcek   2023-01-04 09:15  

#6  At $3,000/month, that’s one full time employee at $18.75/hr. That’s not counting taxes, insurance, workman’s comp., etc. that employers pay out on top of wages. That’s a bargain. No bitching and moaning, showing up late, no show, piss poor attitudes. Welcome to your “living wages” you unemployable scum.
Posted by: Lowspark   2023-01-04 09:13  

#5  Rise of the machines
Posted by: DarthVader   2023-01-04 09:10  

#4  Besides cockroaches and rats don't bother the 'bots.
Posted by: Procopius2k   2023-01-04 09:03  

#3  The ice cream machine entire kitchen is offline...
Posted by: M. Murcek   2023-01-04 08:31  

#2  ... yet.

Just wait until they start collecting a 'automation tax' on each unit.
Posted by: CrazyFool   2023-01-04 05:12  

#1  

Think about the wider ranging issue.

Work related collected taxes.

All of those Gov. accounts that will be taking a hit as the practice grows to replace biological (sex unknown) units ☺ with mechanical units.

No $$$$ will be generated for Social Sec., Workman Comp, UEI, Medicare Medicaid Health insurance and etc..
Posted by: NN2N1   2023-01-04 04:59  

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