AI to change jobs, not destroy them

Artificial intelligence is more likely to augment jobs than to destroy them, a UN study says amid anxiety over the potential impact of the technology.

A UN study says the effects of technology will vary greatly ­between professions and regions.

Artificial intelligence is more likely to augment jobs than to destroy them, a UN study says amid anxiety over the potential impact of the technology.

The launch in November of the generative AI platform ChatGPT, which is capable of handling complex tasks on command, was seen as a landmark foreshadowing a potentially dramatic transformation of the ­workplace.

But a study by the UN Inter­national Labour Organisation ­examining the potential effect of that and other platforms on job quantity and quality suggests most jobs and industries are only partially exposed.

Most are “more likely to be complemented rather than ­substituted by the latest wave of generative AI, such as ChatGPT”, the ILO said. “The greatest impact of this technology is likely to not be job destruction but rather the potential changes to the quality of jobs, notably work intensity and autonomy.”

The study said the effects of technology would vary greatly ­between professions and regions, while it warned that women were more likely than men to see their jobs affected.

It found that clerical work was the most exposed, with nearly a quarter of tasks considered at risk and more than half having ­medium-level exposure.

For managers and technicians, only a small share of tasks was found to be highly exposed, while about a quarter had medium ­exposure. High-income countries would experience the greatest ­impact due to the number of clerical and para-professional jobs.

The study found 5.5 per cent of all jobs in high-income countries were potentially exposed to generative AI, compared to 0.4 per cent in low-income countries.

The study warned that while AI could lead to positive developments, such as automating routine tasks to free up time for more engaging work, “it can also be ­implemented in a way that limits workers’ agency or accelerates work intensity”. Countries should therefore design policies to support an “orderly, fair and consultative” shift.

AFP