This is a tired argument. Companies will replace you no matter what if they can, outsourcing, automation, whatever, they don't care about you. You are just a line item expense regardless.

Structural demographics means the working age population will continue to shrink year after year [1] [2]. Mass immigration is off the table, at least half of Americans want to deport the undocumented folks already here [3] and heavily curb legal immigration [4]. You can't outsource jobs that require someone be on site in country. Striking is the least pain workers could cause companies. Younger cohorts are much more pro union than older cohorts (Gen Z = ~80% support for unions) [5]. General population support for unions is at historic highs (~70%). 1.8M voters 55+ die every year (per the CDC). 4M voters age into voting. The contract currently being discussed is a 6 year contract. At time of renegotiation at that time, ~10M voters 55+ will have aged out, tilting the electorate further pro union (assuming youth support remains robust). These are one way ratchets being pulled as the Overton window around pro labor slides.

TLDR The evidence does not support that companies will be able to automate their way out of labor exerting its leverage. They cannot even do it today.

[1] https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2024-04-11/withou... | https://archive.today/iZHvg

[2] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-09-18/us-faces-... | https://archive.today/Lyr5t

[3] https://www.axios.com/2024/04/25/trump-biden-americans-illeg...

[4] https://news.gallup.com/poll/647123/sharply-americans-curb-i...

[5] https://www.marketplace.org/2023/01/03/gen-z-is-the-most-pro...