The value of manual labor in the machine age

urgent debates on automation, its social effects, and the threat to cultural identity

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.12662/2447-6641oj.v24i45.6123.pe6123.2026

Keywords:

automation, manual labor, structural unemployment, protective legislation, cultural identity

Abstract

Context: The increasing replacement of human labor by autonomous technologies has generated structural unemployment and the devaluation of manual activities, compromising the recognition of technical knowledge.

Goal: This article aims to analyze the advance of automation and the consequent accelerated insertion of machines into the labor market, with special attention to the social and economic impacts of this transformation. The research, of a bibliographic nature, proposes a critical reflection on the question: "What are the effects of automation on the symbolic and economic value of manual labor in contemporary Brazil?" The study seeks to contribute to the debate on the ethical, social, and labor limits of automation in a context where social inequality already prevails.

Method: To this end, technical and cultural discourses involving the relationship between humans and machines are analyzed to demonstrate how machinery, although efficient, operates devoid of meaning and significance.

Author Biographies

Isabella Vieceli de Menezes, PUCRS

Mestranda em Direito pela Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS). Bolsista do Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq). Bacharela em Direito pela PUCRS. Porto Alegre, RS, BR.

Helena Kugel Lazzarin, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul

Doutora em Direito pela Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos (UNISINOS), com Pós-Doutorado em Direito do Trabalho pela Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS). Professora e Coordenadora do Núcleo de Direito Público e Social da Escola de Direito PUCRS. Coordenadora da Especialização em Direito e Processo do Trabalho da PUCRS. Porto Alegre, RS, BR.

EM ABERTO

Downloads

Published

2026-06-30

How to Cite

MENEZES, Isabella Vieceli de; LAZZARIN, Helena Kugel. The value of manual labor in the machine age: urgent debates on automation, its social effects, and the threat to cultural identity. Revista Opinião Jurídica (Fortaleza), Fortaleza, v. 24, n. 45, p. e6123, 2026. DOI: 10.12662/2447-6641oj.v24i45.6123.pe6123.2026. Disponível em: https://periodicos.unichristus.edu.br/opiniaojuridica/article/view/6123. Acesso em: 27 jul. 2026.

Issue

Vol. 24 No. 45 (2026): EM ABERTO

Section

Artigos Originais

License

Copyright (c) 2026 Isabella Vieceli de Menezes, Helena Kugel Lazzarin

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Copyright and Licensing

According to the current submission policy, authors retain the rights to their works and grant the Revista Opinião Jurídica the right of first publication, with commercial rights reserved by the publisher under the terms of the non-commercial license used. Revista Opinião Jurídica uses a Creative Commons license. The works published are under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC-BY-NC-SA).

This license enables reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator. If you remix, adapt, or build upon the material, you must license the modified material under identical terms. CC BY-NC-SA includes the following elements:

 BY: credit must be given to the creator.
 NC: Only noncommercial uses of the work are permitted.
 SA: Adaptations must be shared under the same terms.

RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE CONTENT

By submitting an article, the author(s) declare to have sole responsibility for the content of the piece and is(are), therefore, responsible for any judicial or extrajudicial measures referring to it.

1. In case of joint authorship, all authors are considered collectively responsible, except when proved otherwise.