Specifically Human: Human Work and Care in the Age of Machines

This paper aims to show how the frequently asked question about thefuture of work, i.e. whether human beings are going to be replaced bymachines and robots, arose, and why it is inadequate to account for thehuman and social value of jobs based on care. We discuss how thedimensions entailed in care professions are specifically human and arguethat any kind of human work actually reflects them (and will reflect themin the future), whatever the impact of technological changes. Thepresent argument also aims to unveil the extent of the effects of thepostmodern epistemological crisis regarding the concept of work, to reformulatethe question about the future of human work, and to offer acharacterization of care as a specific component of human work in theage of machines.