There has been a surge of interest in basic income (BI: the payment of a guaranteed income to all citizens/residents) related to fears about automation and the future of work. this contrasts with a longer tradition of thinking about BI as a matter of social justice. In this talk, Jamie Cooke, Director of RSA Scotland, argues that automation is an issue of social justice, particularly for communities like Pittsburgh and Glasgow, which have already suffered in previous eras economic/technological change.