Future of Work Insights: What AI Workplace Automation Means for CHROs Post Labor Day
Coming to you from 10,000 feet after a Labor Day away. We spent a few hours in the Barcelona airport before this flight. There were robots everywhere. Not just Roomba style but full-on R2D2's making deliveries, cleaning, and whatnot. Of course, we wondered if people lost jobs to these bots, and a real Labor Day conundrum unfolded.
The thing about Labor Day is that most Americans don't know what it's there to celebrate. A lot of people get it confused with Memorial Day. Pro tip: one starts summer, and one unofficially ends it. Labor Day being the latter.
It's always been one of our favorite holidays, as we usually do some kind of trip around it. It's like your last chance to cram in a summer vacation, knowing that many won't be working over that oncoming long weekend.
Back to the conundrum and a history review.
Labor Day History and the Future of Work for HR Leaders
In 1894, the railroad was our country's equivalent to the current airline system. It's how people got around, vacationed, did work, and visited family. So when those workers went on strike, it basically shut down the country. On this occasion, they went on strike based on some pretty basic issues, like the idea that work shouldn't kill you and you should be able to afford to live. This was the genesis for the legislation that led to the federal holiday, Labor Day.
Fast-forward to today's bot-filled airport, where AI workplace automation is behind the scenes, surely eliminating even more jobs, and you start to wonder what this holiday will even mean in 50 years. Could an airline strike shut down the country today? Yes. Fifty years from now? Probably not, the bots will be in charge.
AI Impact on Workforce Strategy: The CHRO Perspective
As we all know, the political and social climate can change rapidly these days. This is no doubt why many tech leaders are talking about giving everyone a "universal basic income" (UBI) because AI will eliminate jobs. If the idea that technology will send tens of millions to the unemployment line, then a 1894-style event could surely materialize.
We're not proposing that massive disruption needs to happen. Instead, we're just thinking about what could happen without real answers.
The Labor Day Conundrum: Celebrating Work in an Automated World
So here we are at that conundrum: taking a holiday to celebrate the rights of workers during a time when workplace automation is rapidly pushing us into a future with less work.
It's worth remembering what technology will never be able to replicate: genuine relationships, creative thinking, and the uniquely human ability to…care. Let's get back to work.
What CHROs Need to Know About the Future of Employee Engagement
The human elements of work—authentic connections, creative problem-solving, and genuine care—remain irreplaceable. As AI workplace transformation accelerates, Chief People Officers must focus on developing these uniquely human capabilities within their organizations.
The companies that will thrive aren't those that simply automate everything possible, but those that strategically combine technology with enhanced human-centered workplace culture and employee experience design.
Current Workplace Culture Trends Worth Watching
Trump's AI czar says UBI-style cash payments are 'not going to happen'
Sad.
'Quiet vacationing': a secret revolt against workplace culture
Taking a vacay, but working while you do it.
First the great migration, now the big hold: why workers are staying put
Because they can pretend to be working while on vacation? (see above)
The Boss Has Had It With All the Office Activists
“Some tech companies now include clauses in customer contracts noting that projects won’t be canceled amid worker pressure”
Leaving this on all remaining editions.
Culture Edit Podcast:
Ep. 104 - Alessandro Basso, Basso Bikes
Guest episode with Alessandro Basso, CEO of Stardue Group (brands Basso and Lee Cougan bikes). He joins us from Croatia, where we chat about Italians working during August, secret holiday spots, whether Bassano del Grappa is the new Girona, and the finer aspects of Prosecco, Amarone, and Grappa aperitif. We go deep on the intention and development of the SV superbike, designing a bike for the rider versus for the aesthetic, why deciding on paint schemes is the hardest part, what it means to be the last family-owned Italian bike brand, bringing Lee Cougan back to US market, and how staying small and Italian is a competitive advantage. We also chat about how to get more people into the sport of cycling, watching Michael Garrison win US bike races on Basso bikes, the new hardtail coming out in September and what’s coming in 2026.
