President Donald Trump dismissed concerns about a labor shortage hindering the progress of a Ford factory, arguing that automation would resolve the issue.
Speaking to CBS Evening News anchor Tony Dokoupil on the floor of a Ford factory in Dearborn, Michigan, Trump was asked about the challenges of filling job openings. Dokoupil pointed to a recent quote from the CEO of Ford, who complained that he had 5,000 open mechanic jobs that he was unable to fill. Trump didn’t see it as a problem.
“That means it’s vibrant. You could also have things where you have so many people, and they can’t get jobs. It’s true,” Trump said.
“We are doing so well. … What’s going to happen is people are being trained rapidly, and you’re going to have a thing called robots, and robots are going to be a big factor,” he continued. “I predict robots are going to be a big factor in the future, and it’s going to help out.”
“But you have a situation now where our economy is doing so well that it’s not that easy to get people. We’re training people, they’re training people, companies are training people, and they’re doing well,” Trump said.
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Reports have indicated that Trump may be shifting his focus to robotics after investing heavily in artificial intelligence. In the case of robotics, his focus centers on the hope that automation will help address the potential labor shortages that may arise from manufacturing being onshored.
“We are committed to robotics and advanced manufacturing because they are central to bringing critical production back to the United States,” a Commerce Department spokesperson told Politico last month.