While not a Marxist, I'm very sympathetic to Marx's view of work in relation to humanity - that through transforming things we come to 'know ourselves' - so that if left to our own devices many of us choose to 'work' - think of people growing their food on allotments, or lads working on their cars.
So if automation takes over many jobs, which it will do (I think bricklaying is one of those high up the list too!) I think we'll still choose to work, it brings meaning to life. Work won't disappear with automation.
Jobs on the other hand, which here I'll associate with work we do to earn an income (work which we don't necessary identify with) is often an entirely different form of work.
Ideally we'd reorganize the economy so that we've all got a basic minimum income, get the bots to do the shitty necessary jobs and then we'd all be free to pursue whatever meaningful work we wish to., or sit around playing WOW.
Kim Stanley Robinson's Mars Trilogy is an interesting account of how an intensified technologically mediated work might be different in the future....
:) i like your point of view. I followed just based on your name, then read your comment and am feeling inspired :)
Those are exactly my thoughts on the matter as well! Completely agreed :)