[Avodah] robots on shabbat

[Eli Turkel]

In 2024, Germany's courts ruled that fully automated robotic supermarkets
must close on Sundays. Let me repeat that: robots got the day of rest.

This applies to stores like Tegut's "*teo*" mini-markets, which operate
completely without human workers. Just robots, doing robot things, selling
you groceries 24/7.

This is where "*Sonntagsruhe*" comes in. Since 1919, Germany's constitution
has required a day off. Originally tied to Christian traditions, it's
evolved to focus on societal rest, family time, and keeping things quiet. A
Hessian court rejected exemptions for the robot stores, classifying them as
retail shops subject to the Sunday ban.

Unions like Verdi fought to prevent automation from undermining the rest
days of human workers. Although the rule is based on religious practice,
its implementation currently prioritizes cultural silence over religious
belief.

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what is the comparison to shabbat laws for a robotic factory ?

-- 
Eli Turkel