I'm no economist but even a brief look at most country's history would show that you can't beat capitalism when it comes to generating wealth and improving the overall income of people. Even avowedly communist China has adopted capitalistic practices. I suppose they'd still be eating sparrows if they didn't.
On the topic of jobs & automation.
Automation kills many more jobs than it creates.
No one wants to admit that but it is true.
Slavery/indentured servitude/sweatshops/prison labor also kills more jobs than it creates.
As does outsourcing/offshoring of jobs, etc. As that tends to be an exploitive practice.
I'd rather have automation over sweatshops, those people are not getting their fare wages. Of course, that means those people would then need to find some other sources of income. In the industrialized world, I think automation is not as a do-or-die case. Just find some other field that can't be automated yet.
As for outsourcing, it's as natural as countries focusing on what product they can make best. If an American won't take $400 a month to answer irate customers, then find someone in India or the Philippines to do it.