AI and the irreplaceability of human effort: an inquiry into labor economies and ethics

Partha, Partha Roy (2025): AI and the irreplaceability of human effort: an inquiry into labor economies and ethics.

Abstract

Artificial intelligence is being touted more and more as something that will supplant human labor, something that inspires some but terrifies most. Giant tech giants are driving this, presenting automation as something inevitable and even desirable. But one would still like to know: can one really dispense with human effort in maintaining the tempo of civilization? This essay contends that while AI can boost productivity and reshape markets, substituting fully for human labor is not feasible or desirable on ethical bases. The analysis is a mix of three arguments. At the labor economies level, the analysis looks at how automation destroys forms of employment, especially in informal and gig economies where dignity and stability are already weak. At the market level, it asks if AI creates truly new demand or only redistributes value, raising questions about the possibility of limitless growth by means of automatization. At the moral level, it considers dignity, autonomy, and value of service, knowing that work is not merely a way of making a living but also a path of meaning and continuity. The implications are that human labor is more than a production factor but the foundation of civilization. Care, ritual, and creativity are key to advancement in ways that are not replicable by machines. To turn a blind eye to facts is to risk hollowing out economies and societies. The paper ends by advocating for a balanced way where AI arrives as a tool that supplements and does not substitute human work.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: Artificial Intelligence, Labour Economics, Ethics, Inequality, Sustainable Development,AI and productivity
• Subjects: J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J1 - Demographic Economics > J11 - Demographic Trends, Macroeconomic Effects, and Forecasts; J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J1 - Demographic Economics > J18 - Public Policy; J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J2 - Demand and Supply of Labor; J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J2 - Demand and Supply of Labor > J24 - Human Capital ; Skills ; Occupational Choice ; Labor Productivity; J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J7 - Labor Discrimination; J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J7 - Labor Discrimination > J70 - General; O - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth > O1 - Economic Development; O - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth > O1 - Economic Development > O11 - Macroeconomic Analyses of Economic Development

References

Economic and AI Literature

Acemoglu, D., & Restrepo, P. (2018). Artificial Intelligence, Automation, and Work. NBER Working Paper No. 24196. National Bureau of Economic Research. Brynjolfsson, E., & McAfee, A. (2014). The Second Machine Age: Work, Progress, and Prosperity in a Time of Brilliant Technologies. W. W. Norton & Company. International Labour Organization. (2021). World Employment and Social Outlook: Trends 2021. Geneva: ILO. Crawford, K. (2021). Atlas of AI: Power, Politics, and the Planetary Costs of Artificial Intelligence. Yale University Press. Gebru, T., et al. (2021). Datasheets for Datasets. Communications of the ACM, 64(12), 86–92.

Philosophical and Ethical References

Sen, A. (1999). Development as Freedom. Oxford University Press. Bhagavad Gita. (1997). In Eknath Easwaran (Trans.), The Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living (Vols. 1–3). Nilgiri Press.