According to a new survey involving 2000 CEOs worldwide, as reported by BTA, the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies is anticipated to result in job reductions for workers and employees across thousands of companies over the next five years.
Company executives anticipate hiring fewer employees due to AI.
The survey was conducted by the Swiss staffing firm Adecco Group and the consulting firm Oxford Economics. A significant portion of the CEOs who participated (41%) indicated that they expect to start hiring fewer employees because AI technologies will take over some of their duties.
“Artificial intelligence is emerging as an increasingly important factor that puts pressure on the labor market,” stated Denis Machuel, the CEO of Adecco Group.
“Companies need to make more efforts to retrain their employees. They need to redirect them (to perform tasks not handled by AI) to avoid unnecessary disruptions during this technological transition,” Machuel pointed out.
From computer programs, through media publications to literary essays – generative systems based on AI technologies can quickly create diverse content. Although this technological process is far from perfect, it has already become a key factor in the development of some industries and professions, noted the BBC.
The CEOs who participated in the survey by Adecco Group and Oxford Economics lead companies across 18 sectors of the economies of 9 countries, including the energy sector, retail, and automotive industry in the USA, Canada, Germany, and Japan. These directors manage both administrative staff and workers, as pointed out by CNN.
A substantial portion of company leaders (46%) stated that they would redirect their employees to other departments if AI technologies began to perform their duties.
About two-thirds of the directors included in the study indicated that they would rather hire people who know how to use AI in their work, rather than training their current employees how to use this technology.
Artificial Intelligence is Changing the Labor Market
The study conducted by Adecco Group and Oxford Economics paints a gloomier picture compared to a study presented by the World Economic Forum last year.
That study involved over 800 companies worldwide. The results showed that a quarter of them expect artificial intelligence to lead to job losses. Half of these companies forecasted that AI would create new job positions.
Technologies for analyzing large volumes of data, combating negative climate changes, and improving cybersecurity are expected to be key to creating new jobs. This is stated in an analysis by the World Economic Forum on the development of artificial intelligence.
However, this is little consolation for the employees and workers who have lost their jobs due to AI.
Some technology companies have already announced that they have made cuts because their job duties will be performed by AI-based technologies. Among them are the companies that manage the file storage service Dropbox and the language learning application Duolingo.
In March 2023, experts from the American investment bank Goldman Sachs announced the results of their study. They showed that generative artificial intelligence platforms, including the chatbot ChatGPT, could cause “serious shocks” in the labor market, as reported by CNBC.
The analysis of labor markets in the USA and Europe showed that two-thirds of jobs could be automated, at least to some extent.
In most of the professions at risk in the USA, artificial intelligence could partially replace between 25% and 50% of employees, the analysts concluded. They noted that up to 300 million jobs globally could be affected by the introduction of artificial intelligence. However, its use could also stimulate labor productivity and “over time” lead to an increase in the global gross domestic product by up to 7%, according to the Goldman Sachs report. The report indicates that some jobs will be more significantly affected by artificial intelligence than others. For example, professions that require heavy physical labor are less likely to be significantly impacted.
In the USA, the largest share of jobs that could be most quickly automated are in the area of auxiliary administrative activities in the private and public sectors (46%), followed by legal professions (44%), and positions in architecture and engineering activities (37%). In the financial business sector, it is possible that 35% of job positions could be replaced, according to the experts at Goldman Sachs.
The data for Europe paint a similar picture. The most affected by artificial intelligence might be positions in auxiliary administrative activities (45%), and the least affected – those related to craftsmanship (4%).
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