Computerized ordering crashes human employment

A customer uses a kiosk at a food court in Seocho District, southern Seoul, on Wednesday.

A customer uses a kiosk at a food court in Seocho District, southern Seoul. [NEWS1]

A customer uses a kiosk at a food court in Seocho District, southern Seoul, on Wednesday.

The introduction of kiosks in restaurants resulted in an 11 percent decrease in the employment of staff serving food and the introduction of ordering tablets induced with a 7.6 percent decrease in employment, according to a report released by the Employment Information Service (EIS) on Wednesday.

Restaurants answered that the main reason for the introduction of kiosks came down to the desire to reduce labor costs, followed by more accurate revenue calculation and reduced queuing time for customers, according to the EIS survey that asked 2,000 restaurants in Korea.

BY CHO YONG-JUN [cho.yongjun1@joongang.co.kr]