Where have all the jobs gone? That is the question asked by so many people.  Of course many have gone to low labor cost countries but that is not the entire answer.  The new 2017 Honda Civic Hatchback is being assembled in the U.K.  That is not a country known for its low labor costs.  This model will be sold in the United States, Canada and elsewhere.  The video is a little too long but notice that there are no people in the video for over 4 minutes.  Then the number of workers is small.  The car is welded and painted without  human interaction.  That part is all automated.  Assembly of the parts still requires human activity but if Honda and the other car manufacturers can find a way to do automation they will employ that opportunity.

2017 Honda Civic sedans will go on sale in the U.S. and Canada this month. The sedans are assembled Greensburg, Indiana, and in its Alliston, Ontario, Canada, plant. The Civic Hatchback will be manufactured in Honda’s U.K. Manufacturing plant in Swindon, England, but make no mistake, the 1.5-liter double overhead cam, direct-inject turbocharged, in-line four-cylinder engine is all Japanese.