Actually fixxxer113... companies today increasingly automate in order to cut operational costs.
During recession times, companies are forced to automate that much more and faster.
They do it the moment it becomes affordable.
If companies expect to remain in business, they will have no choice but to automate everything - otherwise they will be left behind.
Its unavoidable. Computers surpassed Humans in repetitive and specialized jobs over a decade ago, and today, everything that most companies do can (and will be) automated.
No one is irreplaceable.
Its actually easier, cheaper and more cost effective to automate a job than to employ a Human that cannot compare to machines in the amount of productivity or how much they can work.
Also, machines can be designed to last indefinitely, require little to no maintenance and to be self-maintaining. We already had that technology and resources to pull it off globally a long time ago.
Problem is the artificial notion of 'cost' or 'money' that's holding us back - but as I said, its only a matter of time at this point.
Automation isn't a bad thing... main issue is that we don't live in a system that use technology or automation for betterment of everyone, but instead, its used for profits and increased productivity.
Essentially, the system is eating itself out of existence at an exponential rate.