Decoder with Nilay Patel

Recode Decode: Why workers need to be part of the conversation about UBI and artificial intelligence

Sep 6, 2019

In this discussion, Steve Greenhouse, a former New York Times labor reporter and author of "Beaten Down, Worked Up," sheds light on the decline of worker power since World War II. He highlights how globalization and the gig economy threaten labor rights and fair compensation. The conversation dives into the issues of corporate accountability, like DoorDash's treatment of tips, and explores the urgent need for worker representation in discussions about Universal Basic Income and the challenges posed by AI and automation.

57:47

Episode guests

Steve Greenhouse

AI Chapters

Episode notes

Intro

2min

The Shifting Sands of Labor Reporting

13min

The Impact of Technology on Labor Rights and the Gig Economy

2min

Disparities in Tech: Workers and the Future of AI

3min

The Divide: Technology, Labor, and Workers' Rights

18min

Navigating the Future of Labor in an Automated World

3min

Navigating the Future of Work

17min

Former New York Times labor reporter Steve Greenhouse talks with Recode's Kara Swisher about his most recent book, Beaten Down, Worked Up: The Past, Present, and Future of American Labor. Greenhouse explains why worker power and compensation are at their lowest levels since World War II and how a series of cultural changes — including globalization, the internet, and the gig economy — have affected and endangered the working class. He and Swisher also discuss DoorDash's long-running practice of stealing tips, Facebook's inshoring of offensive content moderation to poorly managed contractors, and the problems with universal basic income proposals made by people like presidential candidate Andrew Yang.

Featuring:

Steve Greenhouse, former labor reporter, New York Times (@greenhousenyt)

Host:

Kara Swisher (@karaswisher), Recode co-founder and editor-at-large

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