The idea is that robotic manufacturing would be the next stage of the industrial revolution. Meaning that lost manufacturing jobs are not necessarily a bad thing, but rather a natural procession to more advanced division of labor. Indeed, the focus on "keeping jobs" at all costs may be harming development.

But we could also say robots are a means to evade the uncompetitive nature of the labor market. By adding restrictions, politicians are forcing businesses to shift their manufacturing to automatic processes rather than human laborers. So we have lower skilled people prevented from working (and sometimes from ever gaining employment), expensive high-skilled technicians and engineers and expensive technology. The free market will route against barriers, often with unintended consequences. For now at least, Chinese laborers are a better alternative to autonomous robots.