Scott Tilley

Most of us dream of the day when we don’t have to work. You spouse may have snide remarks that suggest the day has already arrived. But the truth is, we are working longer hours than ever before – and you can blame technology in large part for your predicament.

Our always on, always connected modern world lets us work from almost anywhere. But it also blurs the line between work and play. For many professionals, 9-5 days are a thing of the past. Technology has given us a lot of freedom – including the freedom to work 24/7/365. And even if you think going off the grid for occasional downtime is a good idea, your boss may think differently.

This digital drudgery may soon change, however, by further advances in technology. Improvements in artificial intelligence software and robotic hardware will enable machines to perform the duties of many white-collar workers. Pretty soon you may be able to imagine there was no labor – if you dare.

In the television series “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” the 24th century is portrayed as a worker’s paradise. The economy of the future is vastly different. For example, they have done away with currency. People aren’t paid for their work; instead, they work solely for the satisfaction of bettering themselves. Most people in Captain Picard’s world focus on creative endeavors; every new world they visit seems to be some sort of artist colony.

In this Utopian society, people have been freed from most forms of manual labor through the widespread use of autonomous devices. Those who still work with their hands tend to be craftsman, not ditch diggers. But would this really be such a good thing?

I’m not sure we’re ready for a post-job society. Consider the problems that massive unemployment causes in the world today. There are too many young people with too much time on their hands, unprepared to live in such an unstructured manner. And there are too many older people who have lost the traditional reason for getting up in the morning. There are only so many video games you can play, or daytime TV shows you can watch, before you become bored and restless for something meaningful to do. But our education system has not prepared most people to think creatively and to act independently in a way that is beneficial for themselves and for the greater good.

For now, we’re more Ferengi than human when it comes to the accumulation of personal wealth. We follow our own rules of acquisition. Technology may advance by leaps and bounds, but I don’t foresee Gordon Gecko retiring anytime soon.

Scott Tilley is a professor at the Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne. Contact him at TechnologyToday@srtilley.com.