VOA科学技术2023--German Companies Turn to Robots to Fill Jobs for Retiring Workers

 

German Companies Turn to Robots to Fill Jobs for Retiring Workers

German businesses are increasingly turning to robots to fill jobs as the country faces a severe labor¹ shortage.

The situation left about 1.7 million jobs unfilled across Germany in June, official data showed. The country's Chambers² of Commerce and Industry has estimated that half of German businesses are currently struggling to fill positions. Germany is Europe's largest economy.

One of the country's biggest labor issues is the large number of people retiring from the so-called Baby Boomer generation. People in this group are between the ages of 57 and 75. The nation's birth rate has also been going down for years.

Economic experts say it is difficult to replace these retiring workers. Many younger workers do not want to take jobs seen as dirty and dangerous.

The job shortage situation is currently reducing growth in Germany by about $109 billion a year, official estimates suggest. The Federal Employment Agency predicts the amount of available workers will shrink by 7 million people by 2035.

The problem is affecting large, medium and small businesses across the country. Some have decided³ to replace retiring workers with robotic systems.

With similar issues affecting other developed economies, robotic and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies will continue to expand, said Nela Richardson. She is the chief economist⁴ at financial provider ADP.

"Long term, all those innovations are a game-changer for the world of work. Everybody will do their job differently," Richardson told Reuters.

Heavy investment in automation by carmakers and other major industrial companies has made Germany the world's fourth-largest market for robots – the largest in Europe.

But as robots become less costly⁵ and easier to operate, even smaller companies are also using them. The International Federation⁶ of Robotics has estimated that about 26,000 robotic machines were put in place in Germany last year.

"Robots enable the survival of companies that see their future at risk due to staff shortages," said Ralf Winkelmann, director of FANUC Germany. The company sells about half its Japanese-made robots to small and medium-sized businesses.

Family-run ROLEC is a German company that produces systems to protect industrial electronics and control equipment. It bought its first robot last year to permit production to continue at night. ROLEC has already bought a second machine and plans to continue investing in automation.

"It is great when you turn on the light in the morning and the parts are in the storage container and have been processed," ROLEC's CEO Matthias Rose told Reuters.

Industry experts say increasing robotic operations are also a sign that robots have become easier to use, with no special skills required. Most now come with a Human Machine Interface⁷, which operates similarly to a smartphone, said Florian Andre. He is a co-founder of SHERPA Robotics, a start-up that targets companies with between 20 and 100 employees.

Even workers and trade unions – which in the past were fearful of job losses linked to robots – have taken an increasingly favorable position. A public opinion study published in June by a robots marketplace organization found that nearly half of German employees see robots as a help to the labor shortage.

Words in This Story

innovation – adj. the act or process of introducing new ideas, devices, or methods

automate⁸ – n. to control something using machines and not people

staff – n. the people who work for an organization

union – n. an organization of workers formed to protect the rights and interests of its members

1 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

2 chambers   

n.房间( chamber的名词复数 )；（议会的）议院；卧室；会议厅

参考例句：

• The body will be removed into one of the cold storage chambers. 尸体将被移到一个冷冻间里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Mr Chambers's readable book concentrates on the middle passage: the time Ransome spent in Russia. Chambers先生的这本值得一看的书重点在中间：Ransome在俄国的那几年。 来自互联网

3 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

4 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

5 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

6 federation   

n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会

参考例句：

• It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
• Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。

7 interface   

n.接合部位，分界面；v.(使)互相联系

参考例句：

• My computer has a network interface,which allows me to get to other computers.我的计算机有网络接口可以与其它计算机连在一起。
• This program has perspicuous interface and extensive application. 该程序界面明了，适用范围广。

8 automate   

v.自动化；使自动化

参考例句：

• Many banks have begun to automate.许多银行已开始采用自动化技术。
• To automate the control process of the lathes has become very easy today.使机床的控制过程自动化现已变得很容易了。