Fear of robot workers drives Hawaii universal basic income

Lawmakers in Hawaii have voted to explore the idea of a universal basic income to guarantee wages to servers, cooks and cleaners whose jobs may be replaced by machines. The decision was made after research found the majority of tourism jobs will be replaced by robots. As technological innovations displace people's jobs, retraining for many affected workers may be impossible. An official in San Francisco also wants to implement a statewide'tax' on robots that automate jobs and put people out of work. The idea of compensating workers has gained support in progressive areas of the country, including Hawaii and San Francisco. A report last year from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development concluded that 9 per cent of jobs in the United States - or about 13 million - could be automated.